Calling Dr. Chien

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randobambo

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randobambo
I have a friend. Hard to tell if he has dementia or just depression because of his life situation (separated from wife, relatives dropping like flies, his primary care provider calling the FAA saying he shouldn’t fly, etc.) I’ve attached the redacted FAA letter to this post. Some have said to write a well-written letter, which is hard to do without aviation law experience. The best thing I could come up for him is to talk to Pilot Medical Solutions. His AOPA PPS membership lapsed when he got the letter. Long-time DPE and generous CFI who just needs a bit of advice, if possible.
 

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Do you think he should be flying? Neither one of those possible diagnosis seem like they are compatible with flying.

How common is it for primary care providers to notify the FAA?
 
It's hard to unring the bell with CAMI, especially legally. Do you know if the physician tried first to have his patient self-ground? Seems to me that would be more ethical.
 
In regards to his dementia, I do not think he should train student pilots, which he already decided on his own not to do. I do think he would be okay with giving tailwheel endorsements in his LSA with already rated/endorsed pilots. I’ve flown with him and he’s able to instill his 10k+ hours of experience into my landings. I consider him to still be a great pilot. That part of his mind is alive and well. Not sure how explicitly his PCP told him not to fly.
 
Funny how the faa will rely on unethical actions by your doctor when it’s adverse… but ignore perfectly legitimate information on your behalf.

The whole “it has come to our attention that…” should be explained. This is a federal agency preparing to exercise legal action. Even if it is the big bad faa, HE HAS RIGHTS.

The other issue, if there is a legitimate reason he should not have flown since a possible diagnosis and he did, that’s an issue. If, however, he self grounded and has not, not reported, when he should have. He’s in the clear.

Just not a big fan of non transparent reliance on Karen… They are merely highlighting their own incompetence.

It being what it is, I’d consider a lawyer. This is a pretty ugly can of worms that has been opened.
 
GregS99 said:
Isn’t this a HIPPA violation?
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It's HIPAA, but it sounds like it is.
The big problem is that there is no personal recourse for such violations. Also, the FAA is not constrained by the rules of evidence, etc...
 
What makes it worse is his PCP is a nurse practitioner because he lives in a rural area. The FAA really wants medical records from a doctor, not a NP when a pilot is providing medical records that support their flying ability. No problem accepting any complaints from a NP though. We only know that his medical facility tattled because when he pulled his medical records, it was detailed in there. It doesn’t exactly say it was his NP. We did try to find the hotline complaint on him, but the FAA FOIA coordinator didn’t find anything. Been meaning to go back and ask for bulk records, but haven’t yet. Had him submit a request for Airman Medical Records, but it wasn’t in there either. I have a hunch they found a phone number for CAMI or AMCD and bypassed the Office of Audit and Evaluation. It’s probably not in his AMR because he’s under investigation.
 
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midlifeflyer said:
Less an aviation law issue than an aviation medical issue.
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Well, after reviewing his medical records, I noticed that they didn’t quite match up with his medical applications. I don’t think he was fully aware when he filled these things out. As far as I know, he has not soloed during his time of hardship.
 
Sounds like the first thing to do is a FOIA request for whatever the FAA has on his issue, to know exactly what the accusation is.
 
Sounds like they know something happened within the last four years, since that timeframe is referenced multiple times.
 
randobambo said:
Well, after reviewing his medical records, I noticed that they didn’t quite match up with his medical applications. I don’t think he was fully aware when he filled these things out. As far as I know, he has not soloed during his time of hardship.
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If he failed to disclose and the FAA found out about it, we are talking potential legal issue.
Dana said:
Sounds like the first thing to do is a FOIA request for whatever the FAA has on his issue, to know exactly what the accusation is.
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If they accuse him, don't worry. He'll know what it is.

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Ruh roh, rorge.
He's too late for us to do any good. The question here is "did he lie consittutively to the Federal Administration, a Class 4 felony....and not "is he qualified".

:(
 
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randobambo said:
Wow. That’s a bad day. Total loss of licenses.
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bbchien said:
Ruh roh, rorge.
He's too late for us to do any good. The question here is "did he lie consittutively to the Federal Administration, a Class 4 felony....and not "is he qualified".

:(
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Thanks for the response. I figured that’s what’s best for him, as does his family. I am still curious. If AAM-300 did not look at it as a falsification case after these medical records were sent in, what is the path forward to disprove dementia?
 
Here's the real question i my mind: Is the claimed dementia or depression (a) recent or (b) the subject of a "no" answer on a prior application? Those are two completely different questions.

If (a), this is exactly the situation in which an aviation medical expert should be consulted to see if there is something that can be done to save the medical certificate.
If (b), the usual aftermath is denial or revocation of the medical certificate (often even if fixable) followed by a letter like the one I posted from a different case. That's a situation in which a legal consultation is in order. Even then, the lawyer involved might want to have a medical consult to determine how serious the situation to help decide on strategies.

In either case, the bottom line is that you cannot get a reliable answer online. What many don't realize is that good legal (and I hope medical) advice doesn't come from knowing all the answers. That part is easy. It comes from asking the right questions. And that comes from a detailed review of the available information and a one-on-one discussion.
 
midlifeflyer said:
you cannot get a reliable answer online. What many don't realize is that good legal (and I hope medical) advice doesn't come from knowing all the answers. That part is easy. It comes from asking the right questions. And that comes from a detailed review of the available information and a one-on-one discussion.
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THIS.
But if you had dementia or depression sufficient to prevent an accurate answer at last medical, you have a lot of pscyhiatrists to see....PhD. Neuropschologist, too.
 
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