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April 14, 2010
FAA Drops Ban On Pilots Taking Four Antidepressants.
Bloomberg News (4/2, Hughes) reports, "Pilots taking Prozac [fluoxetine] will be permitted to fly as US regulators drop a decades-old ban on four antidepressants."
FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt, in an interview, said this change, which will start April 5, was due to a "better understanding" of the medications' effects. "FAA policy bans pilots from flying if they have depression because the condition can be distracting in the cockpit and pose a safety risk, according to the agency. Under the new policy, pilots with depression can seek treatment with one of the four medications and keep flying." FAA health specialists will also monitor the pilots. This rule "may cover as many as 10,000 pilots...said Fred Tilton, the federal air surgeon."
Related Links:
- Prozac Pilots May Fly as FAA Drops Ban on Medicines ," John Hughes, Bloomberg News, April 2, 2010.
Posted by admin at April 14, 2010 08:36 PM