DENVER – Rep. Don Coram got no traction Tuesday with his effort to keep drivers prone to seizures off the road.
Coram, R-Montrose, was spurred by a Denver-area accident caused by a driver who had a seizure. She killed five people from a family in Coram’s hometown.
His House Bill 1068 would have required doctors to report patients who might lose consciousness to the state driver’s license office, so the patients’ licenses could be suspended. Doctors who failed to make the report could have faced fines or even jail.
Coram attempted an 11th-hour rewrite of his bill Tuesday to remove penalties on doctors and make patients legally responsible for reporting their conditions to the driver’s license bureau. But no one on the House Health, Insurance and Environment Committee wanted to move his bill. It died on a 9-0 vote.
More than a dozen witnesses – many of whom had diabetes, epilepsy or other conditions that can cause a loss of consciousness if untreated – turned out to testify. Coram said he wasn’t trying to be mean.
“It is not our intent to punish you. It is our intent to protect you, along with the rest of the citizens,” Coram said.
Under the bill, patients with certain medical conditions could get their licenses reinstated by proving they are not prone to blackouts. Coram said he understands his bill might be inconvenient, but it could save lives.
“What is an acceptable number of people dying? If one of those happened to be your child or your grandchild, I think it would matter to you,” Coram said.
Opponents included former Republican Rep. Cindi Acree of Aurora, who walks with a cane after suffering a stroke 25 years ago.
Acree worried disabled people might stop going to the doctor or therapist if they thought they could lose their license to drive.
Bruce Brown, district attorney for Summit, Eagle, Lake and Clear Creek counties, said Coram’s bill was unnecessary.
“There are a lot of existing laws on the books that we can, as prosecutors, prosecute people who are driving when they have knowledge of a condition that can lead them to lose consciousness,” Brown said, naming laws from reckless driving to first-degree murder with extreme indifference.
Coram knew his bill was in trouble before the hearing began, but he said he was still happy he brought it.
“We purposely put out a bill we thought would get a lot of attention because we thought a conversation was needed on this subject,” he said.
jhanel@durangoherald.com
