Testing It Up

A school district in Wichita, Kansas will drop its random drug testing policy to focus more on substance abuse prevention and education programs.

Maize school district leaders decided earlier this month to discontinue drug testing students who want to join extracurricular activities.

Under the policy, students in 7th grade and onwards should submit to a possible drug test if they want to join school-sponsored activities, such as sports, band, school dances, graduation ceremonies and even parking in the school lot.

But apart from being expensive, it appears that not all students are partial in having to go through the procedure.

Karen McDermott, spokeswoman for Maize schools, told The Wichita Eagle that the decision to drop the school district’s drug testing policy was based on the feedback they got from the school district’s administration, as well as from the students.

McDermott added that Maize spent more than $31,000 on drug testing since it began in 2007, but only four students tested positive. She said the program was financed through grant funds when it started. However, when the funding began to deplete, they were forced to get the money from the district’s general fund.

Maize, though, will still continue to drug test students suspected of drug use and utilize drug-sniffing dogs to search for illegal substances in lockers and school parking lots. McDermott also mentioned that part of Maize’s substance abuse prevention plans for next year is to train teachers and staff members to spot signs of drug and alcohol abuse.

As we all know, Colorado and Washington have made history in legalizing the recreational use of marijuana. But given how officials from both states are working on establishing regulations about how marijuana should be grown, sold and taxed, it’s obvious some things aren’t easy to iron out. Take for example, the health and safety standards governing the different marijuana products that will be offered to the public.

Experts agree that marijuana, like other agricultural products, can be susceptible to molds, mites, pesticide residue, E.coli, and salmonella. But since pot remains illegal under federal laws, Colorado and Washington officials are aware they cannot rely on the Food and Drug Administration rules. That means, they have to come up with their own health and safety standards that would ensure hazard-free marijuana offerings.

“It’s important for us to do it because it’s public safety and there’s no U.S. FDA oversight here,” Randy Simmons, the Washington State Liquor Control Board project manager in charge of implementing Initiative 502, told NBC News.

At present, there are no quality control tests required in either state and there’s no mechanism for recalling contaminated pot products. The framework for new rules is still a work in progress.

But while small marijuana producers are taking it upon themselves to guarantee the safety of their products, some larger producers have created and imposed their own health and safety standards.

Tripp Keber, chief executive of Dixie Elixirs & Edibles in Denver, assures his marijuana products adhere to federal standards for quality. He sends samples of raw material and finished products to a medical marijuana testing laboratory to make sure his product lines are free from any contamination.

“Anyone can make a pot brownie, but fewer can make a dozen,” Keber said. “Even fewer can make 5,000 with the same consistency.”

Drug use detection in individuals is often performed by means of urine, saliva, and blood tests. But a new study showed several banned substances can also be detected using breathalyzers.

In a study conducted by a group of researchers from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, more than 10 substances were successfully identified in the breath of 47 patients, who were recruited from a drug addiction emergency clinic, using a simple, commercially available breath test. The breath samples were analyzed using liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry, and later revealed the presence of cocaine, amphetamines, methadone, methamphetamine, and marijuana, among others.

The researchers’ findings were published on April 26 in the Journal of Breath Research.

Professor Olof Beck, lead author of the study, said they were surprised that there was still “high detectability for most drugs” even though the samples were taken 24 hours after intake of drugs.

Breathalyzers are rapidly becoming a preferred drug detection device particularly in DUI cases because they are non-invasive and less prone to adulteration. Early this year, the U.S. Navy announced the fleetwide rollout of breathalyzer tests in the hope of discouraging irresponsible drinking among sailors. Even a growing number of schools are subjecting their students to breath tests to prevent drunk driving.

“In cases of suspected driving under the influence of drugs, blood samples could be taken in parallel with breath when back at a police station,” Beck explained in a news release. “Future studies should therefore test the correlation between blood concentration of drugs of abuse and the concentrations in exhaled breath.”

Over 600 drug and alcohol testing professionals gathered in Orlando, FL April 9 – 12 for the Drug and Alcohol Testing Industry Association (DATIA) 2013 Annual Conference.

The conference featured 65 exhibitors from the drug and alcohol testing industry, as well as educational sessions on various topics related to drug and alcohol testing, including: Certified Professional Collector Trainer Training; Advanced Drug and Alcohol Testing Program Management; Developing an Effective Supervisor Training Program and Alternative Specimen Collection Training.

Many big names in alcohol and drug testing spoke at the conference.

Barry Sample of Quest Diagnostics Inc. gave a 25 year retrospective of the Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index, examining long and short – term drug testing trends based upon insights derived from more than 100 million tests performed by Quest Diagnostics over the past 25 years.

Quest publishes the Drug Testing Index as a public service for government, media and industry and it has been considered a benchmark for national drug trends since 1988.

Doug Mullen of Airlines for America talked about aviation testing outside of the U.S. and the implications of the Federal Aviation Administration’s proposed regulations that will require some repair station employees outside of the U.S. to be drug and alcohol tested.

A three-member panel with Brian Drew of Nationwide Medical Review, Patricio Labatut of Global Partners Ltd. and Kirk Hardy of The International Drug Detection Agency explored how international drug testing programs in Latin America and Oceania are advancing and the issues which they are currently dealing with, as well as a discussion about iDATIA, DATIA’s international drug free workplace program accreditation.

Also on the subject of international drug testing, Bill Current, with WFC and Associates, talked about how drug testing in countries outside the U.S. is exploding and what laws, health codes, privacy regulations, labor agreements, and best practice standards U.S.-based drug testing providers need to know about to cash in on this burgeoning market.

The DATIA 2013 Annual Conference also featured presentations on drugged driving, alcohol testing, marijuana legalization, DNA testing and implementing a student drug testing policy, among others.

Welfare drug testing proposals are everywhere these days, so it’s refreshing to finally be hearing about a drug testing bill for politicians.

In Texas, Senator Eddie Lucio, Jr. (D-Brownsville) sponsored SB 612 which requires drug testing people who want to run for public office. The bill is now scheduled for a hearing by the State Affairs Committee at the Texas State Capitol on Monday, April 15, according to ValleyCentral.

Under SB 612, those who want to run for public office will need to sign a waiver of confidentiality and submit themselves to a drug test. They are required to submit a controlled substance screening assessment and drug test to the Texas Ethics Commission. The commission would then announce the drug test results 45 days prior the primary election or general election if there is no primary.

Politicians who refuse to sign the waiver and undergo a drug test will be disqualified from running for public office. Cost of the procedure will be shouldered by politicians who want their name on the ballot.

The bill though would not affect politicians who are already in office, but they will still need to undergo drug screening if they were to run for re-election.

The state’s 31-member Senate approved on Thursday a measure that would require drug testing for some Texans applying for unemployment benefits.

Sen. Tommy Williams, sponsor of the bill, made it clear that not everyone who applies for unemployment benefits is going to undergo the drug test. Applicants will be asked a series of questions and only those that appear to have drug problems will be tested.

“The sooner we identify these people and direct them to treatment plans, the better off they will be and their families will be,” Williams told Corpus Christi Caller Times.

Williams said he has worked with federal officials to make sure his legislation complies with federal laws. He also agreed on two amendments offered by Democrats who voted for the bill.

One of the amendments came from Sen. Kirk Watson (D-Austin), who proposed that if an unemployed applicant fails a drug test and enrolls in a rehabilitation program, s/he will be allowed to continue receiving benefits.

The other amendment calls for the establishment of an appeal procedure to protect against false positive results. This amendment came from Sen. Wendy Davis (D-Fort Worth).

Meanwhile, at least two senators think it’s only fair that lawmakers take a drug test, too. Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr. (D-Brownsville) said he would support Williams’ initiative, but urged the legislators to support his resolution which calls for drug testing senators.

“I believe drug testing is needed to show that we are people of integrity,” Lucio said. “I can’t imagine a profession that could influence our lives more.”

A six-month investigation by ESPN The Magazine and “E:60″ found that some members of the Auburn Tigers — the Auburn University football team — continued to play for the team even though they tested positive for synthetic marijuana use. Worse yet, their parents were never informed about their drug test results.

Freshman tight end Dakota Mosley told The Magazine and E:60 that he failed seven consecutive weekly drug tests for synthetic marijuana, but was never punished. When brought into then-coach Gene Chizik’s office, he was told he could keep his spot on the team.

Antonio Goodwin, one of the four Tigers charged with an armed home invasion robbery and who is now serving a 15-year sentence, said approximately “half the team probably smoked Spice.”

On April 4, Auburn’s athletic department issued a statement that said those interviewed by ESPN made “baseless and inaccurate” allegations.

Auburn director of sports medicine Joseph Petrone conducted nearly 800 tests on student athletes for synthetic marijuana in the six months following the January 2011 championship game and 18 positive results came out, 12 of which were from the football team.

ESPN found, however, that while Chizik and Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs were aware of the football team’s 12 positive tests for synthetic marijuana, they kept the results confidential even from the parents of the players.

A mother of one of the players told ESPN that had she known her son was into synthetic marijuana use, she would have put him into rehab.

“I knew something was wrong but I couldn’t put my finger on it,” said Kimberly Harkness, mother of Shaun Kitchens. “I feel like Auburn betrayed me.”

Previously, we have shared with you reports about employers getting tough on employees who smoke and the growing dilemma of some businesses when it comes to finding workers that do not use drugs. Even though the U.S. has a lot of laws pertaining to the distribution of tobacco and alcohol, as well as possession and use of illegal drugs, many employers feel that having a drug-free policy in their organization is the most effective way to combat a range of problems, including tardiness and absenteeism, attrition, workplace injuries, and high health care claims.

But how does a company begin in creating a drug-free policy?

As we already know, Colorado and Washington have legalized recreational marijuana use. Will the measure affect how employers in both states should treat marijuana use among employees?

Mike Rich, an Occupational Health and Safety Professional with Safety Services Company, discusses some good points about marijuana legalization and whether or not it could hinder an organization’s goal to have a safe workplace.

“If marijuana were to be legalized, I think it would be treated in the same way as alcohol by most employers, essentially it is ok to drink at home, but don’t show up to work under the influence. However, the greater problem … is determining what level of THC in the blood stream is enough to be considered the influence,” Rich said.

Rich notes that while drug testing and counseling services are vital in promoting a drug-free workplace, there are other effective strategies that an employer can put in place to minimize drug abuse, such as eliminating or reducing factors that could invite drug use.

For employees who are seriously considering a drug-free workplace policy, Rich shared useful tips on what to consider when deciding on the contents of the program, drafting it and implementing the program.

To read the full text of the interview, visit Interview With Mike Rich on Drug Abuse in The Workplace.

An increasing number of job seekers in the U.S. are risking their chances of landing a job because of failed drug tests.

In the latest Drug Testing Index™ (DTI) data released by Quest Diagnostics, positive results for pre-employment urine drug screening in the country’s general workforce rose by 5.7 percent in the first six months of 2012 than in all of 2011. Marijuana continues to be the most commonly detected drug, followed by amphetamines.

“The uptick in U.S. general workforce pre-employment data suggests that employers should be mindful of illicit drug use among prospective employees,” Dr. Barry Sample, Director of Science and Technology for Quest Diagnostics Employer Solutions, said in a news release. “These findings align with recent news reports citing some employers facing increasing drug positives when recruiting new workers.”

In January, The Wall Street Journal cited another Quest Diagnostics report that showed many U.S. employers are facing the challenge of finding potential employees because many are failing their drug tests. The problem was particularly worrisome in parts of Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia.

But while pre-employment positive rates have increased, positive results for random drug testing were down by 5.8 percent. In the federally mandated, safety-sensitive workforce, positivity rates in pre-employment urine drug screening remained unchanged from 2011 through the first half of 2012.

Positive results for cocaine oral fluid tests had also dropped by 14.6 percent from January to June 2012, compared to 2011.

Current UFC Lightweight Champion Benson “Smooth” Henderson is all for keeping the sport free from drug-using fighters, even if it means increasing testing for performance-enhancing drugs.

“I’d be for increased testing,” Henderson told MMAFighting.com. “It keeps the playing field even. It makes it so guys have to do a better job of either hiding it, or just not taking it. I think a lot of guys would actually just do a better job of hiding.

The 29-year-old lightweight fighter is proud to be one of the few “clean” athletes competing professionally in the sport of mixed martial arts. So it’s not surprising that he advocates extensive blood testing and random testing to foil fighters who try to gain an edge by taking steroids, testosterone and similar banned substances.

During a conference at the UFC Fight Club last month, Henson described fighters who use PEDs as “mentally weak,” saying they lack “that fortitude to push through and say, ‘Yeah, I didn’t do this, but I’m still going to beat your butt.’”

Since October, there have been more than ten documented failed drug tests or Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT) exemptions handed out by the UFC. Dana White, UFC president, recently sent a warning to those fighters abusing testosterone to watch out because they’re going after them.

“That being said, I’d be for more rigorous testing,” Henderson said. “They want the blood doping testing? We can do that, too. I’m cool with that. Random testing? I’d be for that.”