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Drug-Free Work Week, October 19th - 25th, 2009

Posted By: Tammy Scully

Urgent Treatment Clinics are supporting the US Department of Labor's 4th Annual Drug-Free Work Week by encouraging our partner companies to take time to focus on your current status as a Drug Free Workplace.

If you are not a Drug-Fre Workplace yet, have you considered the following:

*76.4% of all adult illicit drug users are employed.

*The Department of Labor estimates that the annual cost to American employers of on-the-job substance abuse is around one hundred billion dollars ($100,000,000,000).

*Drug users are 5 times more likely to file a workers' compensation claim.

*Drug users' health benefit utilization is 84% greater in dollar terms.

*Drug users are 90% more likely to suffer disciplinary action due to employee theft/fraud. (National Drug Screen, Inc., 2008)

If you ARE committed to being a Drug-Free Workplace, please take the time to review and update your policies and procedures to assure relevance to your current company needs (most company profiles have changed in our recent economy) as well as to assure the policies are comprehensive in their scope. Is it time to drug test applicants, not just your current employees? Do you have a well defined policy and procedure for "reasonable suspicion"? What are the potential consequences of testing positive on a drug test?

Another strong suggestion if you currently provide drug screening is the following: Do you know exactly which drugs you are testing for? Did you know that many of the 9 panel drug tests that include testing for opiates do NOT test for oxycontin, lortab, percocet, or other frequently abused opiates? Urgent Treatment Clinics can provide and Lab-based 9 Panel with Expanded Opiates test that will include these drugs.

Urgent Treatment Clinics' Occupational Medicine team can help you to become a Drug-Free Workplace or assist you in policy review if you are already committed to this important human resource and safety program. Contact us at 859-273-8882 for further information.