New to MedXPress itself? Start with my plain-language guide to the whole process — the timing rules, your confirmation number, and what each item asks. This page is the companion checklist: the "get everything gathered before you open the form" version.
Medications
What you currently take — prescription and nonprescription.
Item 19Visits
Health professional visits in the past 3 years.
Item 18Medical history
The lifetime Yes/No grid — getting your explanations ready.
Before you start
Confirm your AME appointment
Know the date, time, and location. If you don't have an appointment yet, the AME Directory in Pilot Medical Guardian is one way to find an FAA-designated examiner near you.
Make sure you can log into MedXPress
Create an account at medxpress.faa.gov if you don't already have one, or confirm you remember your login.
Set aside about 15 minutes to gather records
Most of what's below comes from your pharmacy app, insurance portal, or calendar — this checklist just tells you what to pull and where it usually lives.
If you're renewing, locate last cycle's application
Not required, but having your prior answers on hand makes it easier to keep your wording consistent cycle to cycle — which matters most for Item 18 (see below).
Source: the FAA's MedXPress User's Guide (PDF).
Gather this firstItem 17 — Medications checklist
Item 17 asks whether you currently use any medication, prescription or nonprescription — and if so, to list them. It's about what you use now, not your whole medication history.
FAA Form 8500-8 (Item 17a).
For each medication you currently take, it helps to have on hand:
- Medication nameBrand or generic — check the label if you're not sure which the form expects.
- Dosage / strengthE.g. 10mg, 20mg — printed on the prescription label or pharmacy app.
- How often you take itOnce daily, twice daily, as needed, etc.
- Prescribing or recommending providerIf applicable — helpful if your AME has follow-up questions.
- What it's forKeeping this noted for yourself helps you answer consistently if it connects to something in Item 18.
Item 19 — Visits checklist
Item 19 asks you to list your visits to health professionals within the past three years — doctors, and also professionals like a physician assistant, nurse practitioner, psychologist, psychiatrist, chiropractor, clinical social worker, or substance abuse specialist — for treatment, examination, or evaluation.
FAA AME Guide — Item 19 and FAA Form 8500-8 (Item 19).
For each visit in the past three years, it helps to have on hand:
- Date of the visitThe closest date you can reconstruct from your records.
- Name of the provider or facilityDoctor, clinic, or practice name.
- Type of professionalPhysician, PA, NP, psychologist, psychiatrist, chiropractor, clinical social worker, substance-abuse specialist, etc.
- Reason for the visitRoutine physical, specific complaint, follow-up, etc.
Item 18 — Getting ready for the medical history questions
Item 18 is the long list of Yes/No conditions. FAA Form 8500-8 phrases the question as:
"Have you ever in your life been diagnosed with, had, or do you presently have any of the following?"
Question wording: FAA Form 8500-8. Explanations requirement: FAA AME Guide — Item 18 instructions.
For anything you expect to mark Yes, the FAA's instructions call for a description and approximate date in the Explanations box. It helps to have on hand, for each one:
- Approximate dateOf diagnosis or occurrence.
- Treating physician's name and contact information
- Related test results, letters, or recordsAnything you already have on hand.
- Your explanation, checked against prior cyclesItem 18 asks about your lifetime history, so wording that stays consistent from one application to the next matters. This is exactly why I built the MedXPress prior-cycle diff into Pilot Medical Guardian.
What to bring to your AME exam
- Your MedXPress confirmation numberGenerated when you submit — your AME cannot pull up your application without it.
- Valid photo identification
- Any physical records tied to Item 18 items you'll discussTest results, specialist letters, discharge summaries — bring the original or a copy if you have one.
Source: the FAA's MedXPress User's Guide (PDF).
Get the printable version
Download the clean one-page PDF to print and bring to your AME appointment or hand to their office — or print this page directly from your browser.
If you'd rather not reconstruct this from memory every cycle
This checklist is free and stands on its own. But if you're tired of hunting through pharmacy apps and old calendars every renewal, that's exactly what I built Pilot Medical Guardian for — it keeps your medications, visits, and medical records organized on your own device and iCloud (I can never see your health data), and its Safari extension can autofill Items 17 and 19 straight into MedXPress so you don't retype them. You review every entry and submit it yourself.
Quick answersFAQ
Is this an official FAA checklist?
No. This is an independent, plain-language checklist and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the FAA. The official system is at medxpress.faa.gov, and what you must report is governed by the FAA's own instructions and your Aviation Medical Examiner.
Do I fill this checklist out inside MedXPress?
No. This is prep to do beforehand, on paper or on your phone, so you have everything on hand when you sit down to complete Form 8500-8 in MedXPress. You still enter your actual application at medxpress.faa.gov.
What if I can't remember exact dates for old visits or diagnoses?
Check your pharmacy app, insurance claims or EOB portal, patient-portal visit history, and calendar for the closest dates you can find. What level of precision is required is governed by the FAA's instructions for Form 8500-8 — this checklist only helps you gather the pieces.
Is this checklist only for renewals, or first-time applications too?
Both. Items 17, 18, and 19 appear on every FAA Form 8500-8, whether it's your first application or a renewal.
This checklist describes the FAA's own process and forms in plain language, as an organizational aid. It is an information resource — not medical, legal, or FAA compliance advice, and it is not affiliated with or endorsed by the FAA. What you must report on your application, and whether you meet the medical standards, is determined by the FAA and your Aviation Medical Examiner. Always rely on the official FAA sources linked above.