Skip to main content

Workforce Drug Positivity Hits 14 Year High in 2018

According to the annual Quest Diagnostics Workforce Drug Testing Index the rate of workforce drug positivity hit a fourteen-year high in 2018. In urine drug tests positives increased nearly five percent in both the safety sensitive workforce and general workforce. The largest percentage was seen in marijuana positives, where it increased in almost all workforce categories.For example in federally mandated, safety-sensitive workforce, marijuana positives grew nearly five percent between 2017 and 2018 and nearly 24 percent since 2014.

"Our in-depth analysis shows that marijuana is not only present in our workforce, but use continues to increase," said Barry Sample, PhD, senior director, science and technology, Quest Diagnostics. "As marijuana policy changes, and employers consider strategies to protect their employees, customers and general public, employers should weigh the risks that drug use, including marijuana, poses to their business."

Additional trends include a decrease in heroin and cocaine positivity as well as decline in all opiate categories for the general U.S. workforce. There has also been a rise in urine specimens coming back "invalid" in attempts to cheat the test.

Another important trend to note is the increase in post-accident positive drug tests. Post-accident positivity in the general U.S. workforce climbed 9% year-over-year and 29% over five years. In the safety-sensitive workforce, positivity for post-accident testing saw a significant jump, seeing an 51 percent increase from 2017 to 2018 and a nearly 81 percent increase between 2014 and 2018. Overall, the post-accident positivity rate has seen annual increaseses since 2010.

"Increases in post-accident positivity among safety-sensitive workers should serve as a warning to employers that employee drug use may increase the risk of workforce accidents or injuries," said Kimberly Samano, PhD, scientific director, Quest Diagnostics. "Our analysis suggests that employers committed to creating a safe, drug-free work environment should incorporate strategies that monitor drug use above and beyond pre-employment drug screening."

To read the complete Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index click here. To view a map of the findings click here

Mobile Medical Corporation (MMC) has twenty-eight years of experience working with organized labor and contractor associations as a third party administrator of substance abuse programs. Our third party administration services include program development, a nationwide testing network, data management, 24/7 web access, random administration and more. Contact MMC today to learn more. 888-662-8358 or info@mobmed.com.

Popular posts from this blog

New Oxycodone Formula Gets Backing of FDA

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."
Read more

Utah Debates Drug Testing for Public Assistance

Utah has begun to follow the path that so many other states have traveled earlier this year. The path leads to drug testing for public assistance. Utah Senator Dennis Stowell had asked that the issue be studied carefully and Rep. Christopher Herrod said "If someone's on drugs, we shouldn't be giving them money," he said. "There's nowhere in the Constitution that says, 'You have a right to get welfare." At the center of the debate is cost and legality. An analyst for Community Action Partnership of Utah stated that "The cost to test all Utah’s families that receive 'Temporary Assistance for Needy Families' would be high." The analyst added, "That testing all welfare recipients just once would cost about $255,000 and a lawsuit against the state would likely cost more than $1 million." Further discussion and analysis is planned in the upcoming months to decide whether to study the issue further, table the issue or wait un...
Read more

CHEATERS DON'T WIN! NC Man's Tricks Backfire During Drug Test

Jeffrey Selph has found himself in the jailhouse for trying to cheat and beat his drug test. Selph was caught by his probation officer with a "yellow like tube with urine" in his possession right before his test. Selph was booked on a charge of defraud drug/alcohol screening tests under a $3,000 bond. Other Drug Test Cheating Stories on MMC's Drug Free Blog... U.S. Airways Express Pilot Doubled As Drug Testing Cheat Entrepreneur Pittsburgh Court Sentences Maker of "Whizzinator" Drug Testing Cheat Device If You Are Going to Cheat On Your Drug Test... Be Prepared to Face The Consequences! Lawrence Taylor's Drug Riddled Past Re-Examined by New Charges Synthetic Human Urine Employed To Pass Drug Tests Illinois Man Caught Cheating on Urine Drug Test Mobile Medical Corporation ( MMC ), a Pittsburgh Drug Testing firm continually monitors the news outlets for incidents of drug test cheating in order to provide further information on the topic. Mobile Medical Corp...
Read more