50% Random Drug Testing Rate Information

They do. They just don’t care. Those are minimum requirements

 

I don't object to being drug tested, if circumstance dictates it, accident, observation, weaving, etc.

What I object to is being unjustifiably targeted (read your guilty until you're proved innocent) and inconvenienced up to like 4x a year now and having to foot the bill because of a small percentage (1%) that chose to use and drive.

Additionally, how come other "sensitive" occupations, like weapons carrying DOT inspectors, state police, etc, aren't mandated to randomly pee in a cup 4x a year also, protected class, above the law?

 

More than 1% tested positive last year nationwide.

By federal law, the sampling is now increased to 50% in lieu of 25%.

That's it in a nut shell.

 

And you wont believe the amount of drug testing imposed on those who are in pain management. Its a form of enforcement. I recall going through about 8 tests a year give or take based on observations and interdiction etc. Most of it is just a 15 minute check to make sure you have the dose of medicine inside you that you said you took. Once that is cleared you got a paper scrip for a refill a month or two. Never more than that.

Several times a year they send your sample to a big time test and that one is billing my insurance as of last year about 900 each. They hunt everything. Including the body's systems such as the kidneys, heart etc. Everything. Those are the enforcement tests. If there was anything like smoking, drinking or pot etc or especially illegal anything across the board you are out of pain management. As in all the way out and then branded on a national do not medicate list. Thats one brand you don't want. Ever.

Personally I am working my way out of it as surgeries fix this that and other. fix fix fix. Doctors think they can fix stuff that couldnt be fixed 10 years ago or did not exist in my grandparents time etc. Medical technology has evolved. I talked about it before and hope that if the fixing is finished and everything is in order I have a pretty good future, as a ternimator, with spare parts. Or a 6 million dollar man. I am working on my first million. Or the doctors rather cash cow me working on their first million. Much of it direct wear and tear of combined age and trucking damage.

If trucking was so bad why would I think about getting back into it? Dont know the answer to that question. Its what I am. There are times I think why do I even bother, just wait until 67 and cash out 3000 a month in SS for life. But no. It does not work that way.

After almost 10 years of that testing, I consider the DOT panel tests via urine and hair very pitiful. If they were really intent on catching more than 1% who ARE actively abusing drugs including pain medicine so they can drive across country in one go then they are not testing them right. It may be a pretty unpopular thought. But keep in mind that kind of testing did not really evolve until the early 90's CDL laws. I think we had a engineer on a train smash up a passenger train after running three stop signals on pot. In the late 80's that is the genesis of our CDL testing into the law around 1991.

The harder a state or system crushes against a larger pool of people violating drug free trucking, the easier it is for someone to outlaw smoking and coffee among other things like maybe powdered sugar with the waffles in the morning and that maple syrup before your day of driving a big rig. //sarcasm the way things are going that might be a new reality 10 years from now.

 

What's next. A truck start interrupter, which you pee in , it analyses and if no prohibited drug found, the truck starts. Mandated refit to all trucks. Data must be forwarded to the ELD for transmission to the home office. If drugs found present in analysis, doors auto lock and cannot be opened by anyone other than a FMCSA employee.

 

I just had to do my random yesterday. First one since 2016. I was reading through the FMCSA rules and they state 50% must be tested for drugs and 10% for alcohol. How does the alcohol work?

I am an owner/op that is part of a third party testing consortium. I don't drive a CMV all that often maybe 5-10 days a month. I never touch alcohol when driving but when I am not I drink all the time. Not alcoholic levels that sounded bad but on days off I drink a few beers.

I guess I am just not understanding the logistics of the alcohol test. If someone at random picked a time I would guess there is a good chance they could detect some level of alcohol in my system. However if I am not driving at that time it is a non issue right? And while I would NEVER drive after drinking if I was nefarious and wanted to couldn't I just go take their test and say yeah I was drinking but I wasn't driving? I don't get how it works.