KUALA LUMPUR: Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai yesterday hinted the possibility that commercial vehicle drivers will have to undergo the sleep test as part of the health test to ensure the safety of other road users.
He said that by undergoing the test, the problem of sleepiness faced by drivers of commercial vehicles such as lorries and buses could be identified in the early stage and prevent accidents while driving.
Liow said he had directed the director-general of Health, Datuk Seri Dr Hasan Abdul Rahman, to discuss with the Transport Ministry whether the test could be carried out immediately or otherwise.
“This is a new thing, so we have to discuss with the Transport Ministry whether to include the sleep test as a medical test for all commercial vehicle drivers besides the urine test being implemented currently,” he told reporters after launching the World Sleep Day, here.
Also present was the president of the Sleep Disorder Society Malaysia (SDSM) Dr Muhammad Muhsin Ahmad Zahari.
“We take this matter seriously because now we just take urine samples to determine whether they (commercial vehicle drivers) take drugs (or not), but this doesn’t solve the problem (of unsafe driving),” said Liow. — Bernama