Sleep apnea is a pretty common diagnosis among people of a certain age, and about half of those tested are diagnosed with some version of it. Most of us probably consider it a potential health risk that should be addressed, if at all, in consultation with our doctor. But don’t tell that to the Maryland Department of Motor Vehicles. Under Maryland law, a sleep apnea diagnosis is grounds for losing your driver’s license as a danger to public safety.

The standard remedy for apnea is a CPAP machine, which aids breathing during sleep. It is so common a prescription that health insurance routinely covers it. And while there is no doubt that better sleep is correlated with better health, my doctor advises that it is also possible to have even severe sleep apnea without perceptible symptoms such

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