Restricting driving for users of psych drugs

[birchswing]

Since I was young, I've asked my doctors if I should really be driving given that I take meds that are CNS-depressants but none has ever been worried about it (in fact one said they thought it was safer to drive on such medications). Then I recently read that the UK is putting limits on blood levels of both legal and illegal drugs, including psych drugs:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/public-approval-for-driving-limits-for-16-drugs

Lorazepam for example has a limit of 100 µg/L. I know the UK has much stricter prescribing laws than the US on benzodiazepines, so this seems like a natural fit for them. I once heard that New Zealand bans driving under the influence of any amount of benzodiazepine.

Does anyone know what dosage of lorazepam 100 µg/L would equate to in the average person?

Do you all think these restrictions should happen in the US? Are there even guidelines now?

To assuage anyone's pre-emptive concerns, I don't personally drive. Autonomous self-driving cars can't come fast enough for me.

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[Yellowfin]

I don't believe that they are taking tolerance into account. There is a large difference between a teenager who found mom's pill cabinet with that concentration compared to a patient prescribed lorazepam at therapeutic doses for years.

The New Zealand law, I understand its intentions, but it could discriminate against patients prescribed benzodiazepines who are in no way "intoxicated".

 

[Psychobabbling]

Isn't that like saying its discrimination against the alcoholic, because he/she lives at 0.18

 

[birchswing]

It's a difficult question. I think the philosophy of the law is clear: to not allow people to drive who are impaired to a certain extent. But what is that extent and how do you measure it? Tolerance to alcohol brings up another interesting pickle.

As I said, self-driving cars can't come soon enough!