Last week, an all but routine breathalyzer test of a Denver area city heavy equipment operator turned into an unprofessional farce when the testing machine used for a random alcohol test lacked the paper to print out the employee's failed test results . Without the state required testing print out, The hearing judge ruled that the failed test was invalid and the employee could return to work! This same employee a few months ago also failed a random drug test by having cocaine in his system, this violation landed him in treatment and with an agreement to keep clean, he got to keep his job then too. With the economy and the unemployment rate the way it is and the dangerous situation he is putting himself and others in - this guy must like pushing his luck! When it comes to job site and workplace safety, employers should make sure that they are using a professional substance abuse administrator like Mobile Medical Corporation (MMC) whose services comply with all testing requirements and certifications. Mobile Medical Corporation ... Keeping You Out Of The "Paper Jam!"
The FDA recently voted in favor of pushing a new formulation of oxycodone hydrochloride for approval. The new OxyContin formula is more difficult to crush or dissolve which will hopefully make it harder to be used as a drug of abuse . The FDA recommended that Purdue Pharma's application for a new, resin-coated formulation should replace the original version, which has been on the market since 1996. Randall Flick, MD, an anesthesiologist at the Mayo Clinic who voted to recommend approval of the drug said, "Clearly the old formulation is worse than the new, although I think the difference is relatively small," Flick concluded, "Hardcore abusers are likely to devise new ways to break down the harder tablet or figure out which solvents will dissolve it fastest, within 'day or weeks' of the product's release on the market."