DOT Guidance for Drug Testing Process

DOT issues new guidance for drug testing process

Information should help employers make “refusal” decision

Posted July 8, 2014 The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has issued new guidance explaining when DOT-regulated employees can leave a urine collection site without violating the testing rules. The new question-and-answer guidance clarifies:

• When a collector may give an employee permission to leave a collection site, and

• What happens if an employee leaves the collection site before testing is complete.

According to the DOT, the new guidance “constitutes official and authoritative guidance and interpretation” concerning its drug and alcohol testing rules in 49 CFR Part 40. The guidance was issued on July 3, 2014, by the DOT’s Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy and Compliance. According to the new guidance, the testing process is complete when the chain of custody form (CCF) has been filled out and the urine specimens have been sealed in plastic bags, as specified in Sec. 40.73(a)(1)-(6). If an employee leaves the collection facility before that process is complete, the collector must inform the employer who then must decide whether the employee’s actions constitute a refusal to test. “To make this determination,” the guidance states, “the employer should consider the information documented on the CCF and the advice and information received from the collector and service agents, as well as any supporting information provided by the employee (i.e., in the event of a medical emergency, copies of hospital admission records/EMS records/police records, etc). “The employer must document its decision, and the solid reasoning for the decision, in all collection site refusal determinations. Copies of these decisions, and the information relied on in making those decisions, must be maintained in accordance with Sec. 40.333 and the applicable modal recordkeeping requirements.” The guidance goes on to state that if a DOT auditor finds that the employer has not properly documented their “refusal” determinations, they may be subject to penalties. Misinformation may lead to CDL holders’ downgraded licenses Launch of National Registry results in misunderstanding of ME’s role Posted July 21, 2014 The required use of Medical Examiners (MEs) appearing on the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners (NRCME) for all interstate driver physical examinations performed as of May 21, 2014, has resulted in a common myth circulating the transportation industry. Many drivers and motor carriers have incorrectly come to believe the MEs will submit proof of medical certification to State Driver Licensing Agencies (SDLAs) on behalf Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) holders. This is untrue. MEs have not been assigned this task. CDL holders that mistakenly believe this is taking place may find their CDLs downgraded (i.e., inactive for use in interstate commerce) if they fail to personally submit the medical examiner’s certificate. Where is this misconception originating? It may have its roots in one of two sources. MEs are required to submit — to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) — a monthly report on the exams they have performed during the previous month. This information is submitted on the federal level and is not shared with individual state licensing offices. The other possible source for the incorrect understanding of the NRCME rule is a proposed rule from May 2013. The FMCSA’s proposed rule would require MEs to submit, on a daily basis, driver physical examination results to the FMCSA. The proposal calls for the electronic transmission of driver identification, examination results, and restriction information from the National Registry system to the SDLAs. However, it is important to note that is still a proposal, and the agency has not gone forward with its concept.

Update 8/19/2014