Author: John

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Virginia Beach has announced that they will be starting a drug treatment court, with the goal to rehabilitate non-violent drug offenders and addicts, in hopes of providing them with an alternative to prison.

The goal of the Virginia Beach Drug Treatment Court (VBCTC) is to be used as a way to provide drug offenders a way to develop better long term behavior and create a path in the Circuit Court of Virginia Beach for drug offenders to receive help and rehabilitation.

Colin D. Stolle, Commonwealth’s Attorney for the city of Virginia Beach, mentioned that the VBTC is designed to be easy to get in, and hard to get out as there are several phases, each with incentives and sanctions that can be imposed on offenders when necessary.

Requirements

Not everyone will qualify for the program. In order to be accepted into the program, offenders must:

  • Reside in Virginia Beach
  • May not have a violent criminal history
  • May not have any prior convictions for Possession with Intent to Distribute drugs
  • and must have a previously suspended jail or prison sentence in excess of 18 months

Offenders must also report daily to their treatment provider, must maintain employment, complete community service, must complete homework, may not reside with other drug users, and will undergo frequent random drug testing. A positive drug screen or violation of a condition of the program can result in a variety of sanctions, including community service, jail time, or expulsion from the program.

“We hope to equip these offenders with the resources they need to kick their habits and change their entire lifestyle,” said Stole about the new program.

Accredited Drug Testing Inc. (ADT) is a nationwide company specializing in Drug, Alcohol, DNA testing. DOT Physicals and Background Checks. Tests are administered utilizing urine, oral/ saliva, hair follicle, blood and breath alcohol.

ADT provides full service Drug Free Work Place programs to small, medium and large companies, and drug testing services to individuals as needed. With over 20 years of experience, the staff at ADT is certified and trained in all Drug, Alcohol, and DNA testing procedures including DOT regulated businesses.

With Drug Testing Centers and affiliated collection facilities throughout the United States, Accredited Drug Testing Inc. is your one stop shopping source for pre-employment, random, reasonable suspicion, and post-accident testing provided in a courteous, cost effective, and confidential manner.

 

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Orlando, FL – Accredited Drug Testing, one of the Nations’ leading providers of drug and alcohol testing for employers, has announced that in an effort to support the hurricane relief efforts affecting the State of Texas and Florida, any first responder (fire, police, medical) and any USCG personnel or employees assigned to hurricane preparedness or relief efforts, will not be charged for any drug or alcohol test which may be required relating to their employment effective September 8, 2017 through October 1, 2017.

Mr. James A Greer, the President and CEO of Accredited Drug Testing, Inc. stated, “With the devastation in Texas from hurricane Harvey and the potential destruction of Hurricane Irma facing Florida, our Company wishes to provide some form of relief to employers hiring temporary or permanent relief workers and to the dedicated first responders and their employers that may be required to take a drug or alcohol test during these difficult times.”

Accredited Drug Testing has Company owned and affiliated testing centers in all cities throughout the United States and provides drug and alcohol testing for pre-employment, random, post-accident and reasonable suspicion needs in conjunction with an employer’s drug free workplace program.

The company’s drug and alcohol testing services are provided to DOT and non-DOT companies including small, medium and large employers. Services include the complete administration of a employers’ drug testing program including scheduling, SAMHSA Certified Laboratory analysis, Medical Review Officer verification and confidential results reporting.

The Management and staff of Accredited Drug Testing, Inc. wishes to convey our thoughts and prayers to all of the people in the State of Texas and Florida for their safety and well-being.

To contact Accredited Drug Testing, please call Alison Rivera at 800-221-4291 or info@accrediteddrugtesting.net

“When You Need A Test, Choose The Best”
www.AccreditedDrugTesting.net

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Last Thursday afternoon in a press conference the 45th President of the United States declared the Opioid Epidemic a “National State of Emergency”.

“The opioid crisis is an emergency, and I’m saying officially right now it is an emergency,” he told reporters at his golf resort in Bedminster, New Jersey. “It’s a national emergency. We’re going to spend a lot of time, a lot of effort, and a lot of money on the opioid crisis.”

What is a State of Emergency?

For those of us who don’t work in government, a “state of emergency” can sound frightening, but what does it actually mean? A government or division of government (i.e. on a municipal, provincial/state level) may declare that their area is in a state of emergency. This means that the government can suspend and/or change some functions of the executive, the legislative and/or the judiciary during this period of time. It alerts citizens to change their normal behavior and orders government agencies to implement emergency plans and frees up disaster funding for cities and states dealing with the epidemic.

Refresher on the Opioid Epidemic

A lot of people don’t know that the gist of the has been happening in the early 1990s when doctors came more aware of chronic back and muscle pain many Americans were facing. And because of this need pharmaceutical companies created opioids to meet this demand but the public and doctors were vastly unaware of the long term side effects these pills could cause.

Fast forward to early 2010s where addiction and abuse of opioids are at an all time high, especially in the United States. And once users started seeking out a stronger high, or move on to other kinds of opioids, heroin abuse was on a huge upswing.

There is a lot of speculation as to why this happened, many believe doctors were getting paid to prescribe these highly addictive drugs, others believed pharmaceutical companies knew of the addictive elements of opioids early on and wanted to get people hooked but regardless on average 90 people die every day from opioid abuse. And by 2027, as many as 650,000 people will die from this prescription drug abuse if it is not stopped.

What can we do?

From a citizens’ perspective, all we can do is help those we see in need by directing them to the nearest substance abuse counseling program and helping them kick this deadly habit. From a government perspective, declaring the opioid crisis a national state of emergency is the first step in a long series of pieces to fix this disaster before we lose any more of our fellow Americans.

Did you know Accredited Drug Testing now offers testing for expanded opiates? If you are or know of a loved one in danger of opioid prescription abuse, call 800-221-4291 to schedule your test today and take the first step on the road to recovery.

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The Drug & Alcohol Testing Industry Association (DATIA) has awarded Accredited Drug Testing, Inc. the National Accreditation For Administration of Drug and Alcohol Testing Programs Status. This accreditation means that our facility, operations, and personnel meet the highest standards in areas such as regulatory compliance, client confidentiality, accountability, company service standards, operational practices, business ethics, and professional competency for drug and alcohol testing program management.

A primary requirement of the NAADATP Program is that principal(s) of Accredited Drug Testing, Inc. have attended comprehensive training on standards of program management and have passed an industry developed exam on these policies and procedures. This accreditation is awarded to a limited amount of companies each year and the selection for the award is competitive and rigorous.

According to DATIA’s Executive Director, Laura Shelton, “as a Nationally Accredited Institution for the Administration of Drug and Alcohol Testing Programs, Accredited Drug Testing, Inc.’s clients can be assured that they are committed to offering superior program services while adhering to the highest professional standards. We congratulate them on this achievement.”

The Nationally Accredited for Drug and Alcohol Testing Program Management (NAADATP) program was created by quality-minded leaders in the drug and alcohol testing industry interested in raising the level of proficiency in drug testing as well as alcohol testing program management. This program aims at upholding the highest standards of program management. This program aims at upholding the highest standards of program management in the company’s operations and personnel.

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A private high school in Kentucky signed off on randomly drug testing their students on July 4th, this past week. The board at Trinity High School has been attempting to officially implement this for years with 2 years of testing under their belt.

How long have they been doing it?

Six hundred students were tested during their initial year of drug-testing, with 24 students (4 percent) testing positive. During the just-completed school year, they tested 800 students – with just 3 percent testing positive (24 students). While the rates are low, the school considers one positive test a test too high, and is doing everything they can to enforce their stance on drugs and binge drinking.

What’s it costing?

Including using a hair drug test, which can detect any drug use of up to 90 days prior. The standard in the industry is a urine 5 panel drug test, which can test for up to a week prior. Adopting a hair test as the random test of choice is very expensive, one test usually goes for $139.99. This price will be covered by the tuition the families are paying for their students to attend Trinity, at $13,700 a year when paid in full and the price goes up for payment plans.

When a student tests positive, their first reaction is not punitive. The school meets with the parent(s) and student, review the results and encourage them to use community counseling resources to interrupt this risky behavior. During this phase of drug testing, no school consequences occur. School counselors are available for support and guidance. If a student tests positive, he will be tested every 100 days until further notice. If he tests positive again school consequences begin. This has been rare so far.

Parents love it!

Parents support the program because, the school says, they understand it empowers their kids to make better decisions. At parties or in unsupervised homes, teens often are pressured or forget good advice from parents, school and church. A parent told us “we hear frequently that it really does help in peer situations to be able to say, “I can’t. My school tests.””

 Though Trinity wasn’t the first school to test in this area, several other schools have visited them to learn more and adopted their policy as their own.

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Danny Duffy has been in the MLB for 6 years with the Kansas City Royals, but this is the first year he has been called for 12 random drug tests… and it’s only July. The MLB has not made a comment about it yet but firmly stands behind its’ random drug testing policy.

Why does he think this?

He can’t help but think something is up and took to twitter to talk about the subject:

Danny Duffy Tweet

It’s happened before…

Duffy isn’t the first player questioning why they’ve been submitted to so many drug tests this year.Brewers slugger Eric Thames, who returned to the majors from Korea and has hit a plethora of dingers, wasn’t so sure the drug tests were as random as the league claims.

“I went the long way around to come back here. This whole thing is surprising me, as well. I really have no goals for this year. I wasn’t trying to break any records or set anything. I just wanted to apply what I learned in Korea to see how it would fare here. I’m shocked at all the results. I’m just here to play ball, and do my best to stay healthy, and stretch as much as I can. So, yeah, if people keep thinking I’m on stuff, I’ll be here every day. I have lots of blood and urine.” Thames said in an interview addressing the drug testing.

How can ADT Help?

While the MLB can claim the tests are random, there is a difference between random drug testing, and drug testing under a “Reasonable Suspicion” claim. Accredited Drug Testing Offers “Reasonable Suspicion Training” for any supervisors or HR Managers that want to be able to test under reasonable suspicion, or send an employee to get a drug test when a supervisor believes they may be using or under the influence of drugs. Only companies that have at least one employee that have gone through Reasonable Suspicion Training are legally allowed to test for reasonable suspicion.

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What will the drug testing look like?

“We are delighted to be able to work in partnership with Boomtown this year to help reduce drug-related harm on site”, said Measham, the President of The Loop, in a statement. “We will be providing our free, anonymous, drug safety testing – MAST – for the first time at Boomtown this year and hope that this will help inform all services on site, as well as festival-goers, who may encounter substances of concern”.

Why Now?

Many times music festivals can be the breeding ground of unsafe, tampered drugs and the people that sell them. Over the years several drug overdoses and deaths have happened at music festivals because of synthetic drug use. So The Loop is aiming to solve this growing problem by making sure BoomTown is a fun and safe environment for attendants. The issue is not so much convincing festival organizers that it is a good idea, but getting police to prize safety over criminalizing people. This allows them to come forward with their drugs without fear of being arrested on their way out of the testing tent.

BoomTown will increase security to stop dangerous drugs from entering the festival grounds to begin. And with drug abuse rates the highest they have been in 10 years, there is no room for lack of safety control when possible. BoomTown will also have a section of its website dedicated to raising awareness of current dangerous drug trends at festivals and further educational information.

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On June 10, 2016, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) published its final rule for Drug & Alcohol testing for MOW workers which amends Part 219 regulatory requirements and the addition to random drug and alcohol testing of Maintenance of Way Workers, as defined by the definition of “Roadway Worker” in Part 214.7.

What is the FRA’s MOW Rule?

This rule expands the scope of FRA’s drug and alcohol testing regulations to cover employees (including contractors) that perform railroad maintenance-of-way activities as defined by section 412 of the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008.

Under the new updated rule, the FRA will hold railroads, contractors, and subcontractors equally responsible for ensuring that their employees who perform MOW activities are in compliance with the requirements of Part 219.
Furthermore, the rule requires that railroads submit a revised and expanded drug & alcohol compliance plan to the FRA 30 days prior to June 12th, 2017.  Plans are required to include written confirmation that the contractors working for railroad companies have their own plans in place, submitted and approved by the FRA.

For more information on the new MOW rule or to enroll in our DOT FRA Consortium, please contact us at 800-221-4291.

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Today, June 2, 2017, Knox Medical, a Florida based company will be opening its first and Orlando’s first medical marijuana dispensary to the public. The Orlando dispensary will be located at 1901 N. Orange Ave next to the white wolf café and set to open its doors on June 2, 2017 at 11:00am

The Florida Department of Health initially approved Knox Medical to sell non-euphoric medical cannabis products that are low in tetrahydrocannabinol, also known as THC, at its locations.

Patients throughout the State of Florida who are registered with the state’s Compassionate Use Registry will be able to buy the different products offered by Knox Medical on Friday.  In Florida, there is currently no medical dispensaries that can legally sell marijuana to be smoked. Knox Medical along with other companies are authorized to sell low-THC oils and cartridges for vaporized-smoking devices.

Knox Medical plans to open more Florida locations in Jacksonville, Lake Worth, Tallahassee and St. Petersburg in 2017 and 2018, according to a spokesperson for Knox Medical.

Marijuana continues to be classified as a schedule I drug under federal law.  The Federal Government categorizes drugs, substances, and certain chemicals used to make drugs into five (5) distinct categories or schedules depending upon the drug’s acceptable medical use and the drug’s abuse or dependency potential.

Schedule I Drugs

Schedule I drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. Some examples of Schedule I drugs are:

  • heroin,
  • lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD),
  • marijuana (cannabis),
  • 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (ecstasy),
  • methaqualone, and
  • peyote

Schedule II Drugs

Schedule II drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with a high potential for abuse, with use potentially leading to severe psychological or physical dependence. These drugs are also considered dangerous. Some examples of Schedule II drugs are:

  • Combination products with less than 15 milligrams of hydrocodone per dosage unit (Vicodin),
  • cocaine,
  • methamphetamine,
  • methadone,
  • hydromorphone (Dilaudid),
  • meperidine (Demerol),
  • oxycodone (OxyContin),
  • fentanyl,
  • Dexedrine,
  • Adderall, and
  • Ritalin

For more information please call us at 800-221-4291 or contact us online.

References:  www.dea.gov

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Major League Baseball’s drug policy was a joint venture between the MLB Players Association and the MLB Commissioners Office.

The goal of this program when it was adopted in the spring of 2006 was to deter and ultimately end the use of banned substances which included illegal drugs and anabolic steroids in baseball.

With the recent opioid epidemic surfacing in the US today it is apparent that drug use is prominent not only in society but also there is a huge opportunity to educate and inform everyone about the dangers of illegal drug use and performance enhancing drugs in sports.

Below are some alarming player suspension statistics for the last 10 years with regards to violations of MLB’s Drug Policy:

  • 2016 – 13
  • 2015 – 6
  • 2014 – 1
  • 2013 – 15
  • 2012- 8
  • 2011- 2
  • 2010 – 2
  • 2009 – 4
  • 2008 – 3
  • 2007 – 8
  • 2006 – 3

During this 10-year period, there has been approximately 173 suspensions associated with MLB baseball players testing positive for a substance on MLB banned substance list.

With only 30 teams in MLB and 25 players on the active roster of each and the playoff season the roster expands to a 40-man extended roster, one could see the opportunity for individuals to test positive over the years.

Major League Baseball along with other professional sports leagues have been making a conscious effort to do their due diligence when it comes to illegal and performance enhancing drugs.

 

For more information contact us at 800-221-4291