DOT Drug Test: What to Know

If you are a safety-sensitive employee you will be in violation of the 49 CFR Part 40 regulation if you test positive for drugs or alcohol. You can not possess or be under the influence of alcohol or any illicit drugs while assigned to perform safety-sensitive functions. If you refuse to submit for any tests regarding alcohol or controlled substances or tamper or substitute your specimen you will fail the DOT drug test.

The DOT drug and/or alcohol test checks to make sure you are following these stipulations should you be working in a safety sensitive position in the public transit, pipeline, railroad, maritime, aviation or trucking industries.

How is the DOT Drug Test Performed

The DOT drug tests are conducted only using urine specimens. The drugs they test for are marijuana, cocaine, amphetamines, opiates and PCP. Prescribed medication may be acceptable as long as they are prescribed to you by a licensed physician, and the physician agrees that you can safely perform your safety sensitive duties under the prescribed dosage.

You will be tested for pre-employment, under reasonable suspicion, at random, return-to-duty, follow-up and post-accident.

You will first be notified to submit for a drug test for any of the reasons mentioned above. You must then report immediately to the collection site where you will proceed to verify your ID and then empty your pockets. Select a sealed kit and then provide 45ml of urine. Observe as the collector checks the temperature of your sample and pours it into two separate bottles which he or she will then label A and B. You will then have to fill out some paperwork.

The A sample will then make its way to a lab for testing and the Medical Review Officer (MRO) will receive the results. They will determine if there’s any reason for a positive, adulterated or substituted result. This includes an interview with you, a review of your medical records or a request that you be examined by a MRO approved doctor.

Upon notice by the MRO, you will have 72 hours from the interview to request the B bottle be tested by another certified lab.

Finally, the MRO verifies the results with your employer as either positive, negative, refusal, or cancelled.

Should you violate the DOT drug and/or alcohol test, you are required to go through the SAP process. To learn more about the SAP process, click here.

If you are an employee who failed a DOT drug and/or alcohol test, or an employer whose employee has failed a DOT drug and/or alcohol test, get in touch with SAP Referral Services.