Seniors who drive should have a medical examination: this is what 77% of French people questioned by the Ifop Institute for the insurer MMA and the magazine Reader’s Digest think of this month of November.
The debate over fitness to drive is not new. As Reader’s Digest magazine recalls, “in June 2012 already, Yves Détraigne, senator (UDI-UC) of Marne, proposed a law establishing a medical assessment of driving ability for drivers aged 70 and over” . But the question has never been settled.
This new survey suggests that drivers would not be against such a measure since nearly 8 out of 10 French people (82% of women) believe that it is necessary to make a medical examination compulsory for senior citizens who drive. However, this wish erodes with age since only 60% of those over 64 are in favor of it. This medical visit could be an opportunity to take stock of the impact of certain medications on driving. Indeed, according to the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm) the drugs considered to be at risk for driving are responsible for 3.3% of accidents of the road in France.
Asked about the subject, the Minister for the Elderly, Michèle Delaunay, explained that she was not in favor of the implementation of such a measure. “We have to stop seeing age only through the prism of risk or danger. The only valid criterion in terms of road safety must be that of the state of health and not of age,” declared the minister, herself aged 66.
