DMV Notice of Reexamination and Virtual Hearing

TLDR at end. Posting full story rather than the summarized one to eliminate confusion. The original post can be found on r/chronicillness.

Long story short, I posted in r/chronicillness trying to figure this out but everyone was confused or thought I wasn’t telling the full story. I was not nervous about this but after that I’m kinda shitting my pants not going to lie haha. I’m posting here because one of the major reasons I have my placard is POTS and I wanted to see if anyone else with POTS has experienced this. I keep a copy of everything medical for my records so what I am quoting is what was written by my doctor or what was written in the only two notices I’ve received.

Medical history: No history of seizures, dementia or cognitive impairments, poor vision or hearing, uncontrolled diabetes, or functional impairments. I do have a history of syncope but have not had a syncopal episode since 2020. I use mobility aids as needed. Cane and rarely a wheelchair.

Full story: Got my first temp placard in 2024. Didn’t have a problem the first time, went in with a wheelchair bc that’s when I was struggling a bit. Primary care put cardiovascular disease on the placard and nothing else. Renewed 6 months later. Went in with a cane and no issues. This time primary care checked “diagnosed disease or disorder which substantially impairs or interferes with mobility due to” and was prompted to fill in section 6A and put “unable to walk or stand for prolonged periods of time, uses mobility aids as needed.” Went in March 11 to renew my 3rd temporary placard. This time my cardiologist filled it out. He checked cardiovascular disease and nothing more. I went in to get my placard in a wheelchair. Everything seemed completely fine and how it always goes.

April 4, I receive the first notice, Notice of Reexamination.

“The Department of Motor Vehicles has the responsibility of evaluating drivers to ensure the safety of the motoring public. In the interest of traffic safety, it is necessary for the department to review your driving qualifications. As part of the evaluation process, you must have the enclosed medical forms completed by a doctor who is most familiar with your medical history and returned to t h e Driver Safety Office indicated a b o v e b y April 25, 2025. After a review of your medical information, you may be required to complete a written, vision, or driving test and/or you may be required to appear virtually by video or by telephone or in-person. However, if your medical condition indicates an immediate risk to public safety, your driving privilege will be suspended, and you will be notified by mail. ORDER OF SUSPENSION FOR NON-COMPLIANCE If the Driver Safety Office has not received the medical information by the date shown above, your driving privilege will be suspended on April 26, 2025, under the authority of Vehicle Code Section 13801. No additional notification will be provided and the action will remain in effect until you contact the Driver Safety Office and complete the reexamination process. If you expect a delay in having your doctor complete these forms, please notify this office immediately. For more information regarding the reexamination process, please see attached or contact the office above.”

It included a driver medical examination form which expresses concern for a neurological condition. I contact the phone number on the notice right away concerned and confused. The man on the phone explains that the incident took place on March 11 2025 at the DMV field office (told me the specific one but don’t wanna dox myself). He informed me that I was reported by the field office employee who helped me on March 11 due to being in a wheelchair and because previous placard paperwork said “unable to walk or stand for prolonged periods of time, uses mobility aids as needed.” I fill out my part and drop it off at my doctors for him to fill out April 7. He called me confused and asked if I know why I’m getting that notice. I tell him exactly what the guy when I rang the number on the notice told me. He tells me not to worry about it and that he’ll fill it out. His nurse messaged me letting me know the driver medical eval form was faxed and sent me a copy of the completed version for my records on April 14. This was faxed over to them 11 days before it was due. My doctor said nothing but good on it. He did not advise against me driving, believes I can do so safely, and believes that there is no need for me to take any vision, hearing, driving, or written exams.

Yesterday, I get home from work and received a second reexamination notice and subpoena from the DMV which includes and very clearly states that I have a virtual hearing scheduled next week. It lists a hearing officer’s name and provides IDs and instructions for joining the hearing. It says,

“The above referenced matter will be conducted remotely via Microsoft Teams. Instructions on how to participate in the hearing are attached in this noticed. You may use your home telephone or computer. All contacts are recorded. At the time and date set for the hearing you are responsible for joining the Teams meeting. The use of cellular or pay phones is not recommended for telephone contacts. ORDER OF SUSPENSION FOR NON-COMPLIANCE If you fail to keep the above scheduled appointment, your driving privilege will be, or remain suspended effective May 9 2025 pursuant to §13801 of the Vehicle Code. Your driving privilege will remain suspended until you contact the department and complete the reexamination process.”

The instructions detail how to log on for my hearing and mention using the codes provided in the subpoena.

And that brings us to present time.

To be clear, to my knowledge I am and always have been in good standing with the DMV since I got my license at 16 and with DOT (department of transportation) when I got my ambulance driver’s license. I passed the required medical exam without issue. I have no criminal history. Never been in an at fault accident (was rear ended for the first time in 2024), never gotten a ticket. Therefore, my driving record is clean. I do not use drugs or alcohol. I have no history of such use. I have never driven without a license. My license is not suspended or revoked. My license has never been suspended or revoked. I have never received anything from the DMV stating my license has been suspended or revoked. I was pulled over for the first time m Thursday and as of Thursday, the police officer who ran my license, said my license is valid. There’s no suspension or revocation on my license. Basically I have nothing on my record and have never been in trouble.

I guess my question is has anyone ever been through this?? What should I expect?? I and everyone who knows about this in my life are so confused. My friend with POTS found this insane but she has a permanent. She said maybe it’s because of the temporary? Has anyone with a temporary placard ever experienced this?? I’ve only renewed 3 times though and I can do so a max of 6. I wasn’t really nervous about this because my doctor told me not to worry. After receiving the hearing notice, and sharing in r/chronicillness and getting that response, I’m shitting bricks. I feel like I’m in trouble and I’ve never been in any trouble before. I’ve never been to court before. I felt like an attorney was overkill but with all these confused responses, I’m starting to wonder if I should consult one other than my aunt.