FAA Easing Rules for Mental Health Issues
 

FAA Easing Aeromedical Rules for Mental Health Issues

-FAA is going to make it easier for pilots grounded for mental health issues to regain certification

https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-n...ource=hs_email

Thanks Biden!

Are there any current airline pilots that fly with a special certification for SSRIs?

I have been on the same dose of an approved SSRI for years, and would rather continue taking that same dose for the long term. Also considering a career change to aviation, and wondering if it really is not worth it if I choose to stay on the SSRI and go through Special Certification process?

Thanks,
- B

I would make an appointment to see an AME, or spend the $$ to contact AMAS. Their Docs are experts on stuff like this. They have weekly calls with the FAA going over their clients cases. I don't know about others on here but I had to Google "SSRI" to even find out what you were talking about. AMAS: https://www.aviationmedicine.com/

If you already have all your certs STAYING in airline flying by means of an SI (if you can get one) is a no-brainer. But BEGINNING training for an airline career when you are already on SRIs… well, you might need to have a frank discussion with your own physician. It depends on the diagnosis of course and a lot of people are on SSRIs who really don’t require them, but some forms of depression have bad long term outcomes even if they are initially successfully treated.

https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.co...916-017-0972-8

Just because those people are able to GET an SI doesn’t necessarily mean they will KEEP an SI. You probably ought to have that conversation with your own physician before you drop a couple hundred thousand into getting an ATP you may not be able to keep using.

Thanks AirBear - I contacted AMAS with my query and thought I would share the results.

Overall, clearly Special Issuance for Mental Health and SSRIs are approved on a case by case basis, however they noted that more and more airline pilots are going through the SSRI special issuance, and choose to maintain the Special Issuance for the long term because they feel better on SSRIs.

That information was extremely promising to me, and made me feel a whole lot better about going through the entire special issuance process. I work in another industry currently, however am training under basicmed (used to have a Class 1 Medical). Once I get (if I get) my special issuance, I'll hopefully be a Private Pilot by then, and can make the decision whether I want to jump into Aviation as a new career path.

Careful... there may be ramifications to flying with a known deficiency, even with basicmed. Make sure you understand that correctly.

please look into Lift Affect. Matt is a pilot and mental health professional who is helping pilots navigate mental health issues and providing information on FAA process. He has a lift affect podcast as well. Lots of guys using his service

Contact Bruce Chien, www.aeromedicaldoc.com
He was one of the authors of the SSRI pathway for a medical. He will tell you exactly what you need, and the FAA listens to him.