DOT Certification questions

I went down to my local DMV yesterday to apply for a CDL permit and before I could even begin to fill out the paperwork I was told that I would not be allowed to take the written part of the test unless I had my DOT certification.

I called a dozen different clinics to see if they performed the DOT physical, and after getting jerked around by most of them, I found two that did. But only one performs the urinalysis (for an extra charge).

Which leads me to my questions. Do you have to have the urinalysis done? And if so, can anyone make any suggestions as to places in the Houston, Texas area that will do both the physical and the urinalysis without breaking the bank as I currently do not have health insurance?

 

One of the two places I found that would do it WAS a chiropractor. He wanted $55 for the DOT exam and another $45 for the urinalysis.

I did however find a chiropractic clinic today that would do it for $75, all included, and went with them.

During the vision test, I was told to read the smallest line I could with my left eye and then my right. So I read the third line from the bottom with my left eye and missed one letter. When I used my right eye to read the second from the bottom line a guy in the waiting room starting laughing because the nurse had to ask which line I just read. Got them all right that time.

The actual physical itself was a cake walk and passed with flying colors. The only thing tripping me up now is my blood pressure. The Doctor won't sign off on the DOT certificate unless I get a blood pressure prescription to drop it ten points.

So now I have to find an actual MD to get a prescription.

 

By urinalysis I mean the pee in a cup to test for blood sugar and not the drug test. Trust me, I made that distinction when I called around.

As for prescriptions, the place I went to said they don't deal with high blood pressure, diabetes, or any of that stuff but would gladly write me a prescription for strep throat if I needed it. I had always thought that a doctor, regardless of their area of expertise, could write a prescription for anything needed within reason. Guess I was wrong.

Anywho, I was told to get the prescription and wait a few days then bring the paperwork for the prescription back so it can be documented on the DOT form and if my BP had dropped a few points they would sign off on it for a year. My BP was 150/110.