Positive Tests Highest Since 2004
DRUGS IN THE WORKFORCE
Positive Tests Highest Since 2004
The rate of workforce drug positivity hit a fourteen-year high in 2018 , according to a new analysis released by Quest Diagnostics , a provider of diagnostic information services . Positivity rates in the combined U . S . workforce increased nearly 5 % in urine drug tests ( 4.2 % in 2017 versus 4.4 % in 2018 ), climbing to the highest level since 2004 ( 4.5 %) and are now more than 25 % higher than the thirty-year low of 3.5 % recorded between 2010 and 2012 .
The new findings of the Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index were unveiled at the Drug and Alcohol Testing Industry Association ( DATIA ) annual conference in Chicago .
For an interactive map with positivity rates and trend lines by three-digit zip code in the United States , visit DTIDrugMap . com .
“ 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 .”
Sample and Kimberly Samano , PhD , scientific director at Quest Diagnostics shared the latest data and analysis from the Drug Testing Index via a live webcast on April 16 .
Marijuana continues to top the list of the most commonly detected illicit substances across all workforce categories ( general U . S . workforce ; federally mandated , safety-sensitive workforce ; and combined U . S . workforce , which includes the prior two populations ) and specimen types ( urine , oral fluid , and hair ).
The rate of marijuana positivity increased in nearly all workforce categories . In the general U . S . workforce ,
marijuana positivity increased nearly 8 % in urine testing ( 2.6 % in 2017 versus 2.8 % in 2018 ) and almost 17 % since 2014 ( 2.4 %). For the federally mandated , safety-sensitive workforce , which utilizes only urine testing , marijuana positivity grew nearly 5 % between 2017 ( 0.84 %) and 2018 ( 0.88 %) and nearly 24 % since 2014 ( 0.71 %).
In the general U . S . workforce , the positivity rate for opiates in urine drug testing declined across all opiate categories . Among the general workforce screening for opiates ( mostly codeine and morphine ), positivity declined nearly 21 % between 2017 and 2018 ( 0.39 % versus 0.31 %), the largest drop in three years and nearly a 37 % decrease since the peak in 2015 ( 0.49 %). Among the more specific tests for other prescription opiates , the positivity for the semi-synthetic opiates ( hydrocodone and / or hydromorphone ) declined two % between 2017 and 2018
www . fueloilnews . com | FUEL OIL NEWS | JUNE 2019 19