A New Challenge for Drug-Free Workplace Programs

Drug testing has evolved into a high-technology industry in the United States, one that has produced dramatic advances that allow easier and more accurate, sensitive, and specific testing. There are many settings in which the identification of drug use is important to enhance public health and safety, including the transportation industry, law enforcement, health care, the military, the nuclear power industry, and many other “safety-sensitive” industries.

Workplace drug testing also has expanded to non-safety sensitive industries, such as retail and commercial workplaces, to reduce theft, accidents, and lost productivity. Drug testing is vital for identification, treatment, and monitoring of those with addictions.

Drug testing became common in the workplace with the implementation of federal drug test requirements of the late 1980s. Although these regulations applied only to federally mandated drug and alcohol testing, they were widely used as a model for unregulated workplace programs. They focused on testing for five illegal drugs of abuse in urine: opiates/heroin, cocaine, marijuana, PCP, and amphetamines. While these federal regulations have been useful, it is past time to update workplace drug testing in the face of rapidly changing drug epidemic and rapidly evolving testing technology.

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