State debates older driver license requirements after recent accidents

6/23/09In the last week since four-year-old Diya Patel was killed at a Stoughton crosswalk by an 88-year-old driver, the idea of greater restrictions on older drivers' license renewals has gained momentum in the State House. It was the third serious accident in the area involving an older person in a month.

In the last decade, the number of older drivers has increased by 18 percent, and in 2007 there were 38 million adults age 65 and older. The CDC reports that 41 percent of those over 75 reported activity impairment of some kind.

Currently, a handful of bills lie in wait for passage, each with its own solution to the problem that, as the Baby Boomer generation moves into retirement, is expected to worsen.

State Rep. Kay Khan's bill would allow doctors to report potentially "risky" drivers--those with bad vision or those prone to confusion--to the Registry of Motor Vehicles, without the fear of being sued. State Rep. Vincent Pedone's bill would require mandatory testing for anyone with a license every "even-numbered" renewal. State Sen. Stephen J. Buoniconti's bill would create a commission to recommend improvements to driving safety. And State Sen. Brian A. Joyce's bill, which he has proposed for the last three legislative cycles, would require a driving test at age 85.

When asked why that age specifically, Joyce Chief of Staff Jeff Perkins cited a Carnegie Mellon study that showed an increase in traffic accidents starting at age 85.

"To [Senator Joyce], I think it just seems like a common sense solution that we should be retesting people," Perkins said. "That getting tested once in your entire life for a drivers license is not enough."

But some argue that the issue of how to make roads less dangerous is a more complicated puzzle than setting a cutoff age.

Massachusetts state law specifically prohibits age-based discrimination in gaining drivers' licenses.

"Any time there is a horrific crash in the news, there is a human tendency to react," said gerontologist Elizabeth Dugan, who spearheads the coalition Safe Roads Now (SRN). "What we want to prevent is something that may be half a solution."

Joyce's bill, Dugan said, is "not a solution."

In a letter sent out Friday to Gov. Deval Patrick and the Registry of Motor Vehicles, Dugan and other SRN coalition partners, such as AARP, AAA and the Massachusetts Medical Society, urged that drivers get tested throughout their lives behind the wheel.

That, along with a tiered system of testing, additional training for law enforcement, strengthening of medical advisory board roles, and continuing education and retraining programs for drivers about to lose their license, make up the kind of comprehensive plan that no single bill has presented yet.

In-person renewals, Dugan said, have been the only effective means so far of reducing accidents, and "certainly not only restricted to older drivers." Perhaps the Registry of Motor Vehicles will set its own standards.

"We are living in remarkable times. This is the first time in recorded history that most of can expect to live in old age," Dugan said. "The policies that worked 20 years ago won't work anymore."

Lissa Kapust, coordinator at the ten-year-old DriveWise program at Beth Israel Hospital, said the important thing is to be careful not to have a "knee-jerk reaction that all older drivers are unsafe."

DriveWise evaluates whether or not older drivers should continue to drive, checking back with patients who may have longterm illnesses or memory impairment, and supporting people throughout the experience.

The hospital first takes referrals from community agencies, the Registry of Motor Vehicles, assisted living facilities and family members and then begins cognitive screenings of the patient.

The process includes meetings with occupational therapists, tests of motor speed, reflexes, vision and comprehension of road signs. Finally, a one-hour driving exam actually out on the open road.

In a couple weeks, the patient receives a recommendation--yay or nay--as to whether the team thinks he or she is safe to continue or whether it's time to "retire" from driving.

The program has evaluated more than 500 patients.

"If you're going to take away someone's license, you have to understand the critical emotional support [needed]," Kapust said. "The whole concept is geared toward helping Baby Boomers think of a time in the future when we might not be driving."

In the meantime, be careful about the language thrown around, Dugan said. Even "[the word] 'elderly' is inflammatory. It has negative connotations," she said. "[We should] remind people that humans are unique and that the more we live the more unique we become."

In fact, according to a 2008 study released by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, older drivers' fatal crashes have decreased since 1997.

"We're generally supportive of anything that makes sense," Perkins said. "Obviously, we're not saying that elderly drivers should have their license taken away. Obviously many people are still capable drivers and they'd be able to pass the test.