Sciteck Clinical Laboratories, Inc

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Sciteck Clinicals Forensic Drug Testing Cost and Benefits Why Drug Test? Why is Saliva (Oral Fluid) Better Than Urine?.......More

Studies have shown that over 70% of drug users are employed. Drug testing is the best deterrent to drug abuse at the work place and denying jobs to drug abusers is the an effective way to attack the drug problem. Studies have shown that Drug testing also increases productivity, slashes medical costs by 300 percent, boosts morale, and curbs theft, tardiness and absenteeism. The workers' compensation discount saves companies who perform drug testing money on insurance premiums. Companies have bee quoted as saying that Drug-free workers are better workers and people that have a drug problem also typically have a cash problems and that "Drug abusers will steal from you, arrange to work overtime and even create work to work overtime. It drives everything they do." The Cost of Testing Corporate America pays over $100 Billion a year due to drug abuse.

For every 1,000 employees Drug Abuse cost Companies $1,000,000 annually.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Study showed that 8 10% of U.S. Workers Abuse Drugs. Employees Reporting Drug Abuse 2004 National Survey on Drug Use and Health by SAMHSA reported the Following Drug Abuse by Industry:
Construction Manufacturing Hospitality / Lodging Retail Finance / Real Estate 20 - 25% 10 20% 12 28% 13 28% 15% www.sciteck.org

Sciteck Clinical Laboratories, Inc.

Phone: 800-905-4272 / Fax: 828-650-2735 PO Box 746, Arden, NC 28704

Sciteck Clinical Laboratories, Inc

Figure 1 Table. Past Month Illicit Drug Use among Full-Time Workers Aged 18 to 64, by Industry Categories: 2002-2004 Combined

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Industry Categories
Accommodations and Food Services Construction Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation Information Management of Companies and Enterprises, Administrative, Support, Waste Management, and Remediation Services Retail Trade Other Services (Except Public Administration) Wholesale Trade Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services Real Estate, Rental, and Leasing Mining Finance and Insurance Manufacturing Transportation and Warehousing Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing, and Hunting Health Care and Social Assistance Public Administration Educational Services Utilities
Source: SAMHSA, 2002, 2003, and 2004 NSDUHs.

Percent
16.9 13.7 11.6 11.3 10.9 9.4 8.8 8.5 8.0 7.5 7.3 6.8 6.5 6.2 6.2 6.1 4.1 4.0 3.8

Sciteck Clinical Laboratories, Inc.

www.sciteck.org

Phone: 800-905-4272 / Fax: 828-650-2735 PO Box 746, Arden, NC 28704

Sciteck Clinical Laboratories, Inc

www.sciteck.org

United States Dept of Labor and National Institute on Drug Abuse Report that Drug Abuse cost the employer $10,000 annually due to employee turnover, Workers Compensation claims, absenteeism, employee theft, violence on the job and the use of health care benefits.

20 million Americans (8% of the total population) are current (within one month) illicit drug users. Canadian statistics fall in line very closely with American statistics. (National Survey on Drug Abuse, 2008, SAMHSA) 15% of employed individuals abused drugs within the past year. (National Survey on Drug Abuse, 2008, SAMHSA) The Average cost of a Workers Compensation claim is $1574 and the average cost of a lost time claim is $5,574. (WCB Alberta, Provincial Synopsis, 2008) When there is employee drug abuse in the workplace, annually, there is: o 5 times more Workers Compensation Claims o 30% greater employee turnover o 40 versus 4 days of employee absenteeism o 36 times higher employee theft o 300 - 400% more health care benefit utilization o A greater chance of workplace violence ( 2/3 of arrestees in such incidences test positive (National Institute on Drug Abuse)

The Law, Liability and Exposure: The courts have strongly supported workplace drug testing and most States now have laws supporting drug and alcohol testing in the workplace. This is also supported by reduced Workers Compensation Cost, Claims and Premiums. While there is no legal requirement to test your employees for drug or alcohol use, you may want to seriously consider doing so. An employer can be held legally liable for any damage or accidents his or her employees cause if they are intoxicated on the job. Testing can protect your company's financial security.

Sciteck Clinical Laboratories, Inc.

www.sciteck.org

Phone: 800-905-4272 / Fax: 828-650-2735 PO Box 746, Arden, NC 28704

Sciteck Clinical Laboratories, Inc

www.sciteck.org

An Attorney for one of the largest Grocery Chains in the U.S. was quoted as saying after his company switched from urine to Scitecks Saliva (Oral Fluid) Collection method and technology. He Stated: We will never go back to urine. We cannot afford the exposure. If we send out an employee for a urine collection and that employee gets into an accident after the collection while returning from the collection site we are liable. Additionally, if that employees drug test comes back as positive for cocaine I dont even want to think about the consequences of that! Saliva versus Urine Disadvantages of Urine Drug Testing:
It can take as much as a 3 days to a week for the results of drug and

alcohol tests to come back from most labs. The larger the lab typically the slower the result. Shy Bladder. As many as 2 out 10 collections are shy bladders and can take as long as 3 hours to collect. This is your companys clock time. If you elect to test your employees for drug and alcohol use, make sure to give them reasonable privacy during the urine sample collection. Employers who do not provide privacy can be sued for invasion of privacy. Check with the Department of Labor (see Resources below) for more information on privacy in testing procedures. When you send an employee to a collection site for a drug screen you are:
Paying them while on the road Taking the liability that they may get hurt or hurt someone else Pay for cost of collection, drug test, travel, clock time Sample substitution or adulteration

Adulteration. This is one of the largest issues with urine drug test

collection. The Adulteration business is a multi-million dollar business and the incentive for a drug addict to tamper with their sample is significant. Adulteration testing is mandated by the Federal Government on every urine sample collected for drug testing. The Highest Forensic Drug Testing Accreditation Agency College of American Pathologist (CAP) in the U.S. requires it on every Performance Testing (PT) sample. o List of some but not all of the common adulterants easily available from the internet, retail stores and head shops:
Table Salt Vinegar Bleach Chromate Nitrite Visine Wart Remover Glutaraldehyde Peroxidase (organic) Meat Tenderizer Hand Soap www.sciteck.org

Sciteck Clinical Laboratories, Inc.

Phone: 800-905-4272 / Fax: 828-650-2735 PO Box 746, Arden, NC 28704

Sciteck Clinical Laboratories, Inc

www.sciteck.org

Urine Drug Testing Cost

o o o o Collection Fees: $15 - $25 Lab Fees: $15 - $60 MRO Fees: $5 - $50 Travel time: Average 2 hours: $15 - $30

The total cost on average for urine drug testing collection, shipping, analysis & review can easily exceed: $50 dollars for every collection. Advantages of Sciteck Clinicals Saliva (Oral Fluid) Drug Testing: Ease of Collection: The collection takes anywhere from 3 to 7 minutes (including paperwork). It is actually collected right in front of the observer by the collector. The employee is the only one to touch the collector during collection. The collection is under direct observation and makes adulteration virtually impossible. This also reduces embarrassment and shy bladder issues. No special collection site facilities are required (e.g. Hers or His bathrooms). No Shy Bladders: The saliva collection is not subject to shy bladder conditions that urine collection can present. Adulteration Deterrent: There is virtually no way to add an adulterant to the saliva during collection in front of an observer. Cost Savings: No collection fees, travel time, lab fees, immediate return to work after collection with only the loss of a few minutes (increased productivity), reduced Workers Comp and Insurance and greatly reduced liability and exposure. Good Indicator of recent usage: Studies have shown that saliva positive rates are higher than those for urine. Single Fee: Includes everything. Collection Device All necessary form for chain of custody (CCF) and collection FedEx Shipping supplies and labels Screening and confirmation by GC/MS (the industry standard) 24 hour turnaround on all screening 24 48 hour average turnaround for confirmation by GCMS On-Line results, Random pulls, Customer Support and Training For more information on Saliva (Oral Fluid) Drug Testing and Benefits feel free to contact us at Sciteck. We look forward to hearing from you. We are number one in the drug testing industry for Customer Support. Just ask our Customers.

Sciteck Clinical Laboratories, Inc.

www.sciteck.org

Phone: 800-905-4272 / Fax: 828-650-2735 PO Box 746, Arden, NC 28704