The FAA MedXPress populates the FAA Form 8500-8, which becomes part of your medical examination conducted by your Aviation Medical Examiner (AME). Something to understand is that any medical record is a legal document. Failing to disclose something on your FAA medical can have legal consequences if it is later discovered. This is something we have previously discussed.
There are multiple sections associated with the MedXPress and the major ones asking medical information include medications, disease/condition history, disability, and appointment history. Knowing the requirement to disclose disability, which most commonly would be Social Security and Veterans Affairs. This brings up a common question: Should I claim [insert medical condition here] on my VA disability?
The thinking that most people have is that if they don’t claim it, then they won’t get rated for it and, in turn, won’t have to disclose it to the FAA. But that isn’t how things work.
In order to claim a medical condition for your VA disability ratings, you must actually have that medical condition. If you have that medical condition then you are already required to disclose it to the FAA. When answering questions on the MedXPress it specifically asks “have you EVER in your life been diagnosed with, had, or do you presently have any of the following?” Your answers to the questions about medications, medical conditions, disability, if any, and appointments have to tell the same story.
One way to get in trouble is to claim something you don’t really have, which we discussed in our article on PTSD. But another way to get into trouble is to hide medical conditions, as we pointed out in our article on Amnesty.
Our position at Wingman Med is that you should claim what you have, but be well treated and managed so that you can still get your FAA medical. But we also recommend that you do not attempt to claim things you don’t have because then you will have no records to back up the diagnosis or treatment to the FAA. The FAA does not care about percentages, they only care about diagnoses. Some diagnoses they aren’t really concerned about. The ones they are concerned about, they just want to know if you are well managed and still able to fly.
ABOUT WINGMAN MED
We are designated FAA aviation medical examiners, residency trained in Aerospace Medicine, and graduates of the Naval School of Aviation Safety. After years of helping friends and colleagues keep their medical certificates and stay in the air, we founded Wingman Med so we can do the same thing for you.
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