Page 39 - OHS, June 2022

receive a negative screening result, thereby allowing the employer to immediately proceed with an employment decision.2
A Solution to Consider
Lab-based oral fluid testing offers some notable advantages for employers to consider. Its ability to detect recent use sooner following ingestion than urine or hair testing, makes it a preferred sampling method for reasonable suspicion and post-accident testing scenarios.
Recent surveys have also shown that more and more employers are turning to oral fluid testing. According to the Current Consulting Group, 13 percent of drug testing providers and employers reported in a mid-year 2020 survey that their clients switched to or added oral fluid testing to their workplace program.3 In the year-end survey, the percentage increased to 15 percent. Prior to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, most experts believed that oral fluid represented about 8 percent of the workplace testing market share.
Furthermore, with the October 2019 publishing of federal guidelines for oral fluid testing, SAMHSA projects about 7 percent of federally-mandated drug tests will transition from urine to oral fluid in the first year, and increase further to 25-30 percent within four years.4
Clearly there is a strong expectation from federal regulators as well as private industry that the advantages of oral fluid testing
offer notable benefits to workplace safety and drug-free testing programs.
John Mallios is the Senior Vice President, Drug & Health Screening at Sterling. John brings more than 30 years of diverse executive experience supporting thousands of employer drug-free workplace (DOT and Non-DOT) and occupational health programs.
REFERENCES
1. https://hubs.ly/Q017LlWl0 2. https://hubs.ly/Q017LmYb0 3. https://hubs.ly/Q017LmqN0 4. https://hubs.ly/Q017LmvY0
DISCLAIMER
Sterling is not a law firm. This publication is for informational purposes only and nothing contained in it should be construed as legal advice. Sterling expressly disclaims any warranty or responsibility for damages arising out of this information. We encourage you to consult with legal counsel regarding your specific needs. We do not undertake any duty to update previously posted materials.
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