Issue 1, 2018

37 www.ortrucking.org Issue 1 | 2018 want to ask more questions and could result in a positive drug test. With the rise in opioid addiction, be sure to follow your medication instructions from your doctor. Companies may consider asking for a list of medications from drivers and verifying with a doctor or TPA/Consortium that the strength of these medications won’t cause drivers to test positive. What does this mean for DOT regulated companies? HHS estimates that the cost per urine test would be an additional $0.60 and a 3% increase in MRO costs as additional review and verifications would need to be conducted. However, the biggest impact this rule could have on DOT regulated companies is that this would increase the percentage of positive tests during random testing. FMCSA currently has a 25% random drug testing rate of truck operators, meaning carriers will be required to randomly test 25% of their drivers in the calendar year. For the random testing rate to go back up to 50%, by rule there must be one year where there is above 1% positive random testing rates among surveyed companies. The most recent data has shown an increasing trend and currently sits at 0.9% positives during random tests. HHS assumes that adding these four common opioids will cause 1% of those tested to test positive. That’s right, the random rate should easily be above the 1% threshold and potentially stay there for the foreseeable future. What can companies do to protect themselves? The first step is to double check your drug testing policy. There is no need for employers to make any changes if their current DOT policies refer to adhering to “... Part 40.” But if the policies list the drugs tested in a panel, the policy needs to be updated. For example, if a policy lists: “Opiates (codeine, heroin, & morphine)” and/or “Amphetamines (amphetamine, methamphetamine, MDMA, MDA, MDEA). Then “Opiates“ needs to change to: “Opioids (codeine, heroin, morphine, oxycodone, oxymorphone, hydrocodone, hydromorphone)” and “MDEA” will need to be removed from the list under Amphetamines. Employers could also remove the sub- categories of drugs and just refer to “Part 40.” Likewise, if cut-off levels are listed in current policies, employers must update those cut-off levels or refer more generally to “Part 40.” Next, we recommend notifying your employees of the changes. While these DOT Agencies suggest that employers provide written notice to employees about their updated DOT policies, doing so is an employer’s prerogative. We also advise companies to educate employees about the opioid epidemic. Communicate the risk factors for opioid abuse and responsible prescription opioid use, provide support and safe return to work to injured employees, and communicate treatment options, if needed. Lastly, we recommend offering your supervisors a refresher course to make reasonable suspicion determinations. Do your supervisors effectively enforce your drug and alcohol testing policy? Do they really know what constitutes reasonable suspicion? Companies are the biggest step in catching drug abuse before it causes injury or fatalities.