National Registry Removals Are Ongoing. Here Is What Every Medical Examiner Should Check Now.
September 3rd 2026: Certified medical examiners across the country are being removed from the FMCSA National Registry, and the pace has picked up. Some examiners learn about it from an email titled “Notice of Emergency Removal.” Others only find out when they try to report exam results and the upload to the FMCSA fails. Remember: Under 49 CFR § 390.115(e), emergency removal allows the FMCSA to immediately remove a medical examiner from the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners and invalidate their privileges to conduct DOT physicals without standard prior notice procedures.
A few things are now clear but the most important takeaway is this: Always keep your NRCME DOT examiner credentials up-to-date and don’t skip those emails from the DOT. Your privileges that allow you to conduct these exams are your responsibility to manage and you should set your own calendar entries to remind you well before key renewal dates.
What to do right now
- Log in to your National Registry account and review every field. Pay special attention to how your licensing information is entered. It should match your state license exactly, with no extra spaces or characters.
- Check your account for any alerts.
- Open “My Profile” and look for anything highlighted in red. Update it even if it has nothing to do with your medical license.
- If your license renews soon, enter the new information as soon as you have it. Do not wait for the expiration date.
- Keep a record of what you updated and when, along with any emails or call notes with the FMCSA, in case you need to show it later.
If you have already been removed
You cannot perform DOT exams until you are reinstated. Correct your account information, complete any outstanding requirements, submit your reinstatement request as soon as the FMCSA allows it, and keep following up until you are back on the Registry. Be prepared for delays and plan for weeks not days
The takeaway is that the audit process can be long and cause delays for your clients. That does not change the outcome. Once you are removed, you go through the same readmission process as everyone else, and it does not happen quickly. The best defense is to make sure there is nothing in your account for the audit to flag.