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Meeting the medical standards as a driver in Ontario

March 9, 2023   ·   0 Comments

By Brian Lockhart

If you are a driver in Ontario, you must meet basic medical standards to be licensed to operate a motor vehicle on a public road.

Some professionals must report patients who have or appear to have certain high-risk medical conditions, including vision conditions or functional impairments. These professionals include physicians, nurse practitioners, and optometrists. Occupational therapists have discretionary authority to report certain conditioners.

If you are applying for a license or already have one, you must not suffer from any mental, emotional, nervous, or physical disability that can significantly interfere with your ability to drive a Class G or M motor vehicle safely. You must also not be addicted to alcohol or a drug to the point where it is likely to significantly interfere with your ability to drive a car or truck safely.

There are mandatory vision standards you must meet in order to drive. You must pass a vision test when applying for your G1 or M1 license.

Your vision will be screened with both eyes open and examined together, with or without the aid of corrective lenses. If you have vision in one eye only, your vision will be screened using only your functioning eye.

The screening will check that you meet the standards in Ontario regulations. If you don’t meet the standard for peripheral vision, the ministry will determine if you are eligible to apply for a vision waiver.

Suppose you don’t meet the standard for peripheral vision. In that case, you may be considered for a vision waiver if you don’t have more than six demerit points on your driving record, haven’t had your license suspended within the last five years because of a criminal code violation, and haven’t had your license suspended with the previous five years because of certain highway traffic act convictions.

You will have to provide a satisfactory vision assessment from an optometrist or ophthalmologist.

If you develop a medical condition, the ministry may receive a report from several medical professionals or a police officer. Each case is reviewed individually and evaluated.

The review will determine whether you are medically fit to drive.

If the medical report confirms that you do not meet the medical standards, your license will be suspended, and you will receive a formal notice of suspension and a letter telling you what type of medical information is needed to have your license considered for reinstatement.

Your license will be considered for reinstatement when information is received and reviewed.

You may be asked to take a new written, vision, and road test at a DriveTest centre.

For some cases, a functional assessment may be necessary. This is conducted by an occupational therapist and a qualified driving instructor.

You may need to undergo a functional driving assessment if you are reported as being medically unfit to drive due to a neurological condition, physical disability or cognitive impairment.

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