Ms Paula Hilman:

The feedback from our roads policing members is that many people who are taking prescribed medications actually carry those with them. Some of them may fail the test, but there is also the opportunity to take a roadside impairment test. The issue would be dealt with differently to see if it was a drug that someone should not be taking if driving, but the circumstances would be considered. A garda would also consider whether the person’s driving was impaired as opposed to just going by a positive test. That it was a prescription medicine would be taken into account. Most gardaí find that people carry those medicines with them to be able to show that they have been prescribed them by their doctors. Gardaí are trained in the roadside impairment test to see whether people are impaired.