Russian Drivers Will Be Tested For Chronic Alcoholism

The Ministry of Health of Russia approved new rules for passing driver's medical commissions when obtaining the first license and returning the old one after the end of the period of deprivation. In these cases, you will now have to be tested for chronic alcoholism, as well as the use of psychoactive substances. This became known to the newspaper "Kommersant".

• According to the new rules, in order to obtain a driver's license, it is necessary to pass a mandatory test to determine the CDT marker in the blood. If its concentration is higher than 1.2 percent, the person will be sent to a drug dispensary for a more accurate diagnosis of liver disease. If chronic alcoholism or other illness incompatible with driving is identified, the license will be denied.
• In addition, driver candidates will have to pass a test for a range of psychoactive substances. To do this, you need to pass urine for analysis. If the express test shows the presence of prohibited substances in the body, then the candidate or the driver returning the license will need to pass another analysis using chromatographs in a specialized laboratory.

• After such a check, the medical board may not only not give a driver's license, but also be fined 4,000-5,000 rubles or punished with administrative arrest for up to 15 days.

The new rules for passing the medical commission are trying to weed out dangerous drivers. But the cost of passing commissions will inevitably rise. According to the traffic police, in the first six months of 2019, more than 11 thousand drug-intoxicated drivers were identified.