In spite of the continuing trend toward lower drug use among federally-
mandated, safety-sensitive workers, as well as continued low positivity rates
for pre-employment drug testing, on-the-job drug use actually increased among
the general U.S. workforce in the first half of 2001.
The positivity rate for the general U.S. workforce, which is the number of
positive test results compared to the total number of drug tests performed by
Quest Diagnostics for this category, increased to 5.0% from 4.9%. This increase
was driven by three key segments of on-the-job testing: "post-accident,"
"random," and "returned to duty," which indicates a return to work following
suspension due to a previous positive test result. The positivity rate for
"post-accident" testing increased to 6.1% from 5.9% in 2000. The positivity rate
for "random" drug testing increased to 7.9% from 7.7% in 2000, and the
positivity rate for "returned to duty" drug testing increased to 5.5% from 5.3%
in 2000. In contrast, positivity rates for these three categories declined for
federally-mandated, safety-sensitive workers.
Federally-mandated, safety-sensitive workers include pilots, bus and truck
drivers and workers in nuclear power plants, for whom routine drug testing is
mandated by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, respectively.
"The data suggest that employers of non-federally-mandated, safety- sensitive
workers should pay close attention to the signs and symptoms of drug abuse among
employees," said R.H. Barry Sample, Ph.D., Director of Science and Technology
for Quest Diagnostics' Corporate Health and Wellness division. "Currently,
on-the-job drug testing is not a very common practice. In fact, only 20% of the
drug testing that we perform among general U.S. workforce employees occurs after
employees have begun work; the majority of drug testing that we do in this
population is for pre-employment screening. Yet, once pre- employment candidates
are employed, positivity rates appear to be on the rise."
The Drug Testing Index summarizes the results of more than 3 million workplace
drug tests performed between January and June, 2001 by Quest Diagnostics. The
Drug Testing Index looks at positivity rates among three major testing
populations: federally-mandated, safety-sensitive workers; the general
workforce; and the combined U.S. workforce.
On-the-job drug use negatively impacts workplace productivity due to increased
absences, accidents and errors, according to the American Council for Drug
Education, a substance abuse prevention and education agency, which operates as
an affiliate of Phoenix House, a non-profit organization dedicated to the
prevention and treatment of substance abuse. Compared to their non- abusing
co-workers, the agency states that substance abusers are:
* 10 times more likely to miss work;
* 3.6 times more likely to be involved in on-the-job accidents (and 5
times more likely to injure themselves or another in the process);
* 5 times more likely to file a worker's compensation claim;
* 33% less productive.
Quest Diagnostics is the nation's leading provider of diagnostic testing,
information and services with $3.4 billion in annual revenues. The company's
diagnostic testing yields information that enables health care professionals and
consumers to make better decisions to improve health. Quest Diagnostics offers
patients and physicians the broadest access to diagnostic testing services
through its national network of approximately 30 full-service laboratories, 150
rapid response laboratories and more than 1,300 patient service centers, where
specimens are collected. Quest Diagnostics is the leading provider of esoteric
testing, including gene-based testing, and is the leader in routine medical
testing, drugs of abuse testing, and non-hospital- based anatomic pathology
testing. Quest Diagnostics empowers health care organizations and clinicians
with state-of-the-art connectivity solutions that improve practice management.
Through partnerships with pharmaceutical, biotechnology and information
technology companies, Quest Diagnostics provides support to help speed the
development of health care insights and new therapeutics. Additional company
information can be found on the Internet at: http://www.questdiagnostics.com.
The Drug Testing Index 2001 Quest Diagnostics Incorporated. All rights reserved.
Annual Positivity Rates
(For Combined U.S. Workforce)
(More than 3 million tests from January to June 2001)
Year Drug Positive Rate
1988 13.6%
1989 12.7%
1990 11.0%
1991 8.8%
1992 8.8%
1993 8.4%
1994 7.5%
1995 6.7%
1996 5.8%
1997 5.0%
1998 4.8%
1999 4.6%
2000 4.7%
January - June 2001 4.7%
Positivity Rates By Testing Category
Testing
Category Jan- Jun 2000 1999 1998 1997
2001
Federally-Mandated,
Safety-Sensitive
Workforce 3.0% 3.1% 3.2% 3.4% 3.5%
General
Workforce 5.0% 4.9% 4.8% 5.0% 5.2%
Combined U.S.
Workforce 4.7% 4.7% 4.6% 4.8% 5.0%
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