False Sense of Security
Many drivers disregard or are oblivious to the dangers. Patients cocoon themselves into assuming that if their doctors prescribe those medications, they must be safe, because they’re not illicit street drugs or alcohol, or because their doctor didn’t warn them. Make no mistake: Many prescription medications impair the critical eye-hand coordination and cognitive abilities that are crucially needed for safe driving, such as:- Motor skills
- Balance
- Coordination
- Spatial orientation
- Reaction time
How Do Prescription Drugs Affect Driving?
Although the same drug may affect people differently (depending on height, weight, sex, and metabolism), common effects may include:- Drowsiness
- Reduced reaction times
- Aggressive or reckless driving
Scant Information in the Field
Unlike the more developed standards and science behind what constitutes drunk driving (for example, Breathalyzer and field sobriety tests, legal limits such as the 0.08 percent blood alcohol content), scant information exists for driving-while-prescription drugged. Statistics aren’t accurate, because existing field sobriety tests don’t always detect impairment by prescription drugs. Thus, accidents caused by prescription drugs often aren’t identified at the time. Unlike with alcohol, no reliable roadside tests can detect impairment by other drugs. The only reliable way to determine whether prescription drugs contributed to an accident is through expensive and time-consuming blood or urine testing. Therefore, statistics vastly underestimate the number of accidents caused by prescription drug.Drugged Driving: Not Just a Teenage Problem
Older persons significantly contribute to dangerous prescription-drugged driving. Sobering statistics from the National Institute of Drug Abuse include:- More than 25 percent of drugged drivers in fatal crashes were 50 or older
- Illegal drug use in adults 50 to 59 doubled between 2002 and 2010
- Due to mental decline, some elderly take prescription medications in the wrong amounts or at the wrong times
- Older prescription users may not break down the drugs in their system as quickly as younger people
