How to Get Medical Authorization for Window Tint

Medical authorization for window tint is a topic you may not be too well-informed about, but people with sensitivities to sunlight often require safer driving conditions. While protection from the sun is always a smart idea when driving, darker window tints can protect your skin from sun exposure, as some medical conditions may result in severe, threatening and immediate health issues from UV rays.

We know — you love wearing your favorite pair of shades while you drive, and may have some level of tint on your windows, but for some, it isn’t enough.

For example, window tint authorization can protect you from skin cancer, melanoma and sunburn. Excessive sun exposure in your car is more dangerous than you may realize. Many people also may not know UV rays can affect your skin through the glass. If you’ve never experienced a sunburn after a long road trip with your arm positioned near your window, you’re luckier than the rest of us who have.

Whether you have a severe skin condition or another type of photosensitivity, darker window tinting can help regardless of your situation. If you are looking to pursue medical window tints to make your vehicle safer, you must have a waiver, and proper authorization requires a physician’s signed statement. In most cases, you will need to fill out a vehicle tint-waiver request form — or some form along those lines — depending on where you reside. However, vehicles exempt from window tints are as follows:

• Ambulances
• Buses
• Church-owned vehicles
• Hearses
• Limousines

With a medical condition requiring protection from sunlight, darker window tints that exceed regulatory and general public limits may be necessary.

What Conditions Typically Qualify for Medical Window Tints

Although many light sensitivity conditions exist, some states only qualify specific ones to receive darker window tints. Make sure to adhere to the regulations of your area and read up on certain specifications you may or may not be eligible for. Here’s what you need to know about common photosensitive medical disorders.

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Systemic lupus erythematosus is an autoimmune disease where patients suffer from marked photosensitivity. Also known as SLE or lupus, the condition becomes more problematic when a person’s skin becomes exposed to UVB and UVA rays. Sunlight can cause flares in lupus, including:

• Arthritis
• Extreme fatigue
• Fever
• Internal organ swelling
• Joint pain
• Kidney problems
• Painful skin rashes

According to the National Resource Center on Lupus, about 1.5 million people in the United States have lupus, and about 90 percent of people diagnosed are women.

Because minor sun exposure can aggravate symptoms such as skin rashes, it can lead a patient to feel an increase in itching and burning sensations. Protecting your skin from the sun when you suffer from SLE is vital in monitoring the conditions. While people can take several measures to protect themselves by wearing sun-protective clothing and applying sunscreen, the simplicity of installing window tints on your car can avoid said examples.

Cockayne Syndrome

Known as a genetic disease, Cockayne syndrome causes delayed development and neurological dysfunctions in babies and children at a young age. Doctors classify the illness by Types I, II or III, depending on a patient’s age and the severity of their symptoms. Cockayne is a rare form or dwarfism including other indications such as accelerated and premature aging and sensitivity to light. About 80 to 99 percent of people with the condition have the following symptoms.

• Abnormal sense of smell
• Ataxia
• Dental cavities
• Photosensitive skin
• Skin blistering

Sun sensitivity like sunburn is caused by a defect in a child’s genes involved in the normal repair of DNA. When the genes become damaged from UV rays, the DNA becomes impaired, but the cell can’t repair the damage to grow back healthy skin. As the body’s natural defense against sunburn, it increases your chance of skin cancer, sunburn and skin blistering.

It’s imperative for people with the disorder to wear sunscreen and dark sunglasses, but window tints in your car can also help avoid skin and retinal damage from the sun.

Bloom Syndrome

People with Bloom syndrome inherited the disorder. It’s associated with low birth weight, short stature and photosensitivity. With Bloom syndrome, people are often smaller than 97 percent of the population in height and weight, and rarely exceed five feet tall in adulthood.

When exposed to sunlight, patients can develop a butterfly rash on their face that reaches across their nose and cheeks. A skin rash can also develop after sun exposure on the back of their hands and forearms. Clusters of enlarged blood cells appear, along with light and dark patches of skin.

The most severe symptoms of excessive sun exposure can increase your risk of cancer when you have Bloom syndrome. People can develop any type, and cancer appears earlier in life, compared to the general population. And what’s worse, you can usually get more than one form. Because contact with sunlight can cause reddening of the skin and dilated blood vessels, people’s risk of melanoma is also higher than usual.

To reduce the severity of specific symptoms, applying window tints to your vehicle can help you control your condition.

Solar Urticaria

Solar urticaria is sometimes called “sun allergy” because your skin can form chronic hives when exposed to UV rays. The hives can develop immediately upon sun exposure — often less than 30 minutes — and can result in severe itching, burning and stinging sensations. Patients may also become light-headed, suffer from headaches and feel nauseated. Other symptoms include:

• Difficulty breathing
• Low blood pressure
• Vomiting

The skin condition affects areas of your skin covered with clothes, but where the fabric isn’t thick enough. It can also hurt exposed surfaces not usually visible to the sun, like your back. Faces and hands, which are often open to sun rays, may not experience rashes or hives because they have built up a tolerance.

Solar urticaria occurs when a chemical in a patient’s body reacts to UV radiation which causes an allergic reaction. It can happen during any time of the year, and mainly affects people around the age of 35. The condition may also be chronic or flare up only a few times a year.

To prevent solar urticaria, you can install window tints on your windshield and windows to block damaging UV rays.

Erythropoietic Protoporphyria

Erythropoietic protoporphyria is a genetic disorder. Though it’s a rare disease, it’s one of the most common types of porphyria, prevalent in about one in 50,000 to one in 75,000 people in the U.S. Symptoms of EPP include painful photosensitivity.

When a patient’s skin has exposure to sunlight, UV rays can cause severe pain and burning sensations, along with swelling, itching and redness of the skin. Symptoms can subside within 12-24 hours with possible scarring.

Exposure to sunlight, even through window glass, can cause skin rashes and begin to appear in early childhood.

UV rays can penetrate through the windshield and windows of our car, so it’s a smart idea to apply a dark tint to your vehicle’s glass to protect your skin.

Albinism

Albinism is an inherited condition where a person’s body is unable to produce the correct amount of melanin. Melanin is a pigment that creates the color in one’s skin to protect it from the sun as it absorbs UV rays. With little to no pigment in the skin, eyes and hair, an albino’s skin is sensitive to the sun. They may have impaired vision and may look older.

If you suffer from albinism, you may be able to receive a doctor’s note for window tinting. Because patients have extreme photosensitivity to their eyes and skin, they are at an increased risk of sun damage and skin cancer. The two most common types of skin cancer that affect albino patients are basal and squamous cell carcinoma.

Someone with this skin condition may also have abnormal eye movements, and their eye sensitivities are often not correctable with eyeglasses, but some have sufficient sight to drive a car. Because albinos can drive cars despite their sensitive skin and eyes, installing window tints can help control their symptoms, as about 18,000 to 20,000 people in the U.S. have some form of albinism.

Xeroderma Pigmentosum

Xeroderma pigmentosum is an inherited skin condition that affects a person’s eyes and skin when exposed to UV rays. Other problems associated with the disease involve problems with the nervous system and an increased risk of skin cancer. Throughout a patient’s lifetime with xeroderma pigmentosum, they are likely to develop multiple forms of cancer, especially on their eyelids, lips and face.

After spending a short amount of time outdoors, people with the skin condition can also suffer from severe sunburn, which causes redness and blistering of the skin. With excessive exposure, their skin can progress into forming freckles. Just as much as their skin, patients’ eyes are sensitive to sunlight, and if they don’t protect their eyes, they may become bloodshot, irritated and cloudy.

According to Genetic Home Reference, about one in a million people have the rare disorder of xeroderma pigmentosum in the U.S and Europe. While it affects thousands of people in the U.S., the skin condition is more common in areas such as North Africa, Japan and the Middle East.

How To Talk to Your Doctor About Getting Tints

If you suffer from any of the above medical conditions or others, you may be able to obtain a signed physician’s statement indicating your medical needs. With an affidavit from a registered physician, either the driver or owner of the vehicle can receive a medical authorization to have darker window tints installed.

However, the stipulations for an affidavit vary, depending on which state you reside in. For example, New York only exempts specific medical conditions, and often won’t approve you if sunglasses or another remedy can solve the issue. They consider people with porphyria, xeroderma pigmentosum and severe drug photosensitivity.

While each process may differ, most states require an application, along with a photocopy of the car’s registration and a window tint medical waiver. The DMV gives medical authorizations to individuals seeking protection from the sun, so your local DMV may be a good starting point to obtain a form.

When your doctor signs the statement indicating your skin condition requirements, the percentage listed on the form shows the amount of light penetrating through the film. For example, if the portion designates 30 percent, it means the tint material must let 30 percent of light pass through the tint.

Medical authorizations for window tints are valid as long as you have the condition, or until you sell the car.

What Percentage of Tints Do Doctors Allow?

Window films for your vehicle can control UV radiation, heat and glare from the sun when it enters your windows and affects your medical conditions. The percentage of the film indicates how much light transmission enters the tint. The lower the percentage, the darker the film will appear. Many states also have different regulations regarding the windshield, windows and rear window.

If your doctor approves you, window tints for medical conditions are often between 20 and 32 percent. Window tints less than 20 percent are not considered valid and will fail inspections, regardless of your affidavit. If you require tinting less than 20 percent, you will be referred to the Medical Review Unit. It’s vital to carry your validation form at all times while driving to ensure you don’t receive charges for illegal tinting.

On the other hand, illegal tinting brings up another point. If your doctor denies your medical authorization, you still have the option to install illicit tint percentages. Again, legal limits vary, depending on where you live. In states with more frequent sun exposure, such as Florida, the percentage will be lower to allow fewer UV rays to go through the glass. Compared to states where the sun doesn’t shine as often, tint percentages may be as high as 35 to 70 percent.

Rvinyl Window Tinting for Your Medical Needs

If you have a medical concern involving skin or eye sensitivity to light, Rvinyl offers a combination of style and affordability to meet your requirements. We make our pre-cut window tint kits especially for a DIY application, which gives you the ability to personalize the exterior of your vehicle.

Rvinyl window tints are not permanent products, and you can remove them as necessary. Not only do we create products for enthusiasts to take pride in performing work themselves, but our pre-cut window tints are also a third of the price of shop charges. They protect the interior of your car, along with your eyes and skin, from damaging UV rays. If your doctor doesn’t approve you for medical installation of window tints, you can follow the local laws of your state about tint percentages.

Our tint films come with a three-year warranty against peeling, cracking and fading. Shop our window tint products and order from Rvinyl. No matter your medical condition, we are here to support your needs. With tint films blocking UV rays, you can drive within a safe environment without causing further harm to your skin or eyes.