New ATRI research initiative will examine the relationship between DOT medical card status and operational impacts, reinforcing the industry importance of truck driver health.
CARMEL, Ind., April 22, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Project 61, the nonprofit movement dedicated to improving the health and longevity of America's truck drivers, today applauded the American Transportation Research Institute's inclusion of new driver health research on its 2026 research agenda.
The newly approved research will examine the relationship between DOT medical card status and operational impacts, helping bring greater attention to the measurable connection between driver health, fleet costs, workforce stability, and long-term industry performance.
For Project 61, the inclusion of this topic on ATRI's 2026 research agenda marks an important step forward in elevating one of the most overlooked and consequential issues in trucking today.
"Driver health affects far more than individual well-being," said Jeremy Reymer, founder of Project 61. "It impacts safety, turnover, insurance costs, workforce stability, and the long-term strength of our industry. We're encouraged to see ATRI elevate this topic, because better research leads to better decisions, and better decisions can help move the needle on driver health across trucking."
The research is expected to explore how DOT medical card duration may serve as a practical benchmark for understanding driver health over time, while also helping quantify the downstream operational impacts tied to health-related challenges in the trucking workforce. The study is also expected to incorporate carrier-based operational cost data and driver survey data to better understand connections between health, fatigue, productivity, turnover, and career longevity.
That focus is especially important in an industry where drivers face long hours, sedentary work, time away from home, inconsistent access to healthy food, and other conditions that make maintaining health more difficult. For fleets, the effects of poor health can extend beyond the individual driver to include insurance costs, workers' compensation claims, sick days, reduced productivity, and turnover.
Project 61 believes research like this is essential to helping the trucking industry better understand the connection between driver health and business performance. By identifying measurable patterns tied to medical card duration and related operating impacts, the research can help establish stronger benchmarks and inform more effective strategies for fleets, industry stakeholders, and policymakers.
Dr. Mark Manera, who serves on ATRI's Research Advisory Committee, has also been a strong advocate for advancing conversations around driver health and industry wellness.
The addition of this research topic to ATRI's 2026 agenda reflects growing recognition that improving driver health is not only a quality-of-life issue, but also a business, workforce, and industry sustainability issue.
About Project 61
Project 61 is a nonprofit movement focused on improving CDL driver health through education, free resources, and community. Founded to address the alarming health challenges facing truck drivers, the organization equips drivers, fleets, and industry partners with practical tools to support long-term health, well-being, and longevity.
Media Contact
Media Contact, Project 61, Inc., 1 317-339-5618, [email protected], https://project-61.org/
SOURCE Project 61, Inc.
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