Employers have experienced over the past six months longer than average turnaround times to receive drug test results. This can be especially frustrating when a pre-employment test result stalls the process for getting a new employee started in a new job.
There are several causes of current delays. Among them:
- staffing shortages at collection sites, laboratories and the offices of Medical Review Officers (MRO),
- team members in collection sites, laboratories and MRO offices reporting illness requiring them to take sick days,
- supply chain shortages affecting the tools and materials laboratories need to perform testing, and
- delays in transporting specimens to laboratories, often caused by staffing shortages and illness.
By many accounts, the workplace drug testing industry is trying diligently to get drug-test result reporting back to normal. The goal is always to deliver to employers’ results in these timeframes:
- within two business days from receipt of specimen at the lab for results testing negative on initial screening, and
- within four business days from receipt of specimen at the lab for results testing non-negative and requiring confirmation testing.
Below we will cover the following:
- How Employers Can Get Better Turnaround Time on Pre-employment Drug Screen
- National Drug Screening’s instant drug testing at LabCorp facilities nationwide
- National Drug Screening’s instant drug testing at Quest facilities nationwide
- For Employer and Clinics Collecting Their Own Specimens – instant testing
How Employers Can Get Better Turnaround Time on Pre-employment Drug Screen
Drug testing regulated by the U.S. Department of Transportation requires all specimens to be sent to a laboratory for analysis, and it will take time for results reporting to return to normal. However, there are timely solutions for securing results from non-regulated testing.
For example, consider instant testing available from National Drug Screening. You can order online or call 866-843-4545 for immediate service. When ordering online, look for the Instant Rapid Urine Test – 5 Panel or 10 Panel.
Through partnerships with Quest Diagnostics and LabCorp, National Drug Screening can offer instant drug testing — also referred to as a rapid drug test or Point of Collection Testing (POCT) — at Quest and LabCorp facilities throughout the United States. These tests can be ordered online, and negative results can be delivered to the employer within a few hours. Employers can receive these negative results by e-mail or by logging into a secure web portal provided by NDS. Specimens testing non-negative on the initial instant screen at the collection site will require confirmation testing at a lab, and results can take up to four business days once the lab receives the specimen.
National Drug Screening’s instant drug testing at LabCorp facilities nationwide
- 10 panel with expanded opiates: Amphetamines, Methamphetamine (including MDMA or ecstasy), cocaine, marijuana, PCP, opioids, benzodiazepines, barbiturates, methadone, propoxyphene, oxycodone
- 5 Panel with expanded opiates - Amphetamines, methamphetamine (including MDMA or ecstasy, cocaine, marijuana, PCP, opioids
National Drug Screening’s instant drug testing at Quest facilities nationwide
- 10 panel with OXY: Amphetamines, methamphetamine (including MDMA or ecstasy, cocaine, opiates, marijuana, PCP, benzodiazepines, barbiturates, methadone, propoxyphene, oxycodone
- 5 Panel - Amphetamines, methamphetamine (including MDMA or ecstasy, cocaine, marijuana, PCP, opiates
For Employer and Clinics Collecting Their Own Specimens – instant testing
For employers and clinics collecting their own specimens in house, National Drug Screening offers NexScreen, a solution for instant drug testing using an electronic Custody and Control Form (CCF).
This unique, instant drug testing system immediately reports a negative drug test result. Specimens that test non-negative are sent to a lab for confirmation testing with an electronically generated lab copy CCF form. This short video explains how the NexScreen program works.
National Drug Screening currently is offering thee configurations of instant drug testing with Nexscreen:
- NexScreen Cup – 6 Panel – Cocaine, Marijuana (THC, cannabinoids), Phencyclidine (PCP), Amphetamines, Methamphetamines, Opiates
- NexScreen Cup – 6 Panel BZO – Cocaine, Marijuana (THC, cannabinoids), Benzodiazepines (BZO), Amphetamines, Methamphetamines, Opiates
- NexScreen Cup – 10 Panel – Cocaine, Marijuana (THC, cannabinoids), Amphetamines, Methamphetamines, MDMA (Ecstasy or Molly), Opiates, Oxycodone, Benzodiazepines, Barbiturates, Methadone
More on Nexscreen from National Drug Screening:
Instant Drug Testing and the Nexscreen System
Nexscreen – Instant Testing – POCT – Paperless
