According to a new Quest Diagnostics Health Trends study published on October 8, 2020, the misuse of fentanyl, heroin and nonprescribed opioids has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study analyzed more than 872,000 de-identified lab results from all 50 states and the District of Columbia.  The researchers compared drug positivity rates before the pandemic (from January 1, 2019 to March 14, 2020) with positivity rates during the first few months of the pandemic (March…

A strong odor of marijuana was sufficient to constitute reasonable suspicion to test, and a positive drug test result constituted just cause for a ten-day suspension, an arbitrator ruled in denying an employee’s grievance.  ZF Active and Passive Safety and UAW, Local 1181, 20-2 ARB ¶ 7646 (Mar. 17, 2020). The union and the employer, a manufacturing plant, were parties to a collective bargaining agreement (“CBA”) that permitted the employer to order a drug or…

A Pennsylvania federal court refused to dismiss an employee’s claim for violation of the Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Act (MMA), reasoning that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court is likely to recognize a private cause of action under the MMA.  Hudnell v. Jefferson University Hospitals, Inc., Civil Action No. 20-01621 (E.D. Pa. Sept. 25, 2020). The court’s analysis of the MMA claim tracked a Pennsylvania state court decision, Palmiter v. Commonwealth Health Sys., Inc., which we blogged about…

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (“DOT”) Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy Compliance (“ODAPC”) has again extended its April 4, 2020 Statement of Enforcement Discretion for Substance Abuse Professionals and Service Agents, effective September 22, 2020. The Statement of Enforcement Discretion previously was extended in June and will now remain in place until December 31, 2020. Under DOT regulations, Substance Abuse Professionals (“SAPs”) are required to conduct a face-to-face assessment and evaluation of an employee…

A federal court in Rhode Island allowed a former employee to proceed with her lawsuit alleging that the employer violated state law when it terminated her employment after a positive breath alcohol test. Stafford v. CSL Plasma, Inc., Case No. 1:19-cv-00270 (D.R.I. September 14, 2020). Stafford worked for CSL Plasma for about a year as a phlebotomist. She was required to have a drug and alcohol test as a condition of continued employment. While awaiting…

A federal court in Tennessee dismissed an employee’s lawsuit in which she claimed that her employer should have changed its drug policy to allow CBD use. Hamric v. City of Murfreesboro, Case No. 3:18-cv-01239 (September 10, 2020). The City of Murfreesboro hired Hamric as a Cultural Arts Program Specialist in August of 2015. Her job duties included teaching children’s art classes and teaching adult artist development courses, among other things. The position subjected Hamric to…

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), proposed scientific and technical guidelines for hair drug testing in federal workplace drug testing programs in the Federal Register on September 10, 2020. The proposed Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs Using Hair (HMG) will allow federal executive branch agencies to collect and test hair specimens for pre-employment drug tests and random drug tests. Hair has…