Important Update for DOT Covered Employers:
Attached PDF

Procedures for Transportation Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing Programs: Addition of Certain Schedule II Drugs to the Department of Transportation’s Drug-Testing Panel and Certain Minor Amendments – Final Rule  Published in The Code of Federal Regulations Monday, November 13, 2017.
https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2017-11-13/pdf/2017-24397.pdf

The long awaited Procedures for Transportation Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing Programs: Addition of Certain Schedule II Drugs to the Department of Transportation’s Drug-Testing Panel and Certain Minor Amendments –  Final Rule was published in the Code of Federal Register this morning, November 13, 2017.

The rule is effective on January 1, 2018.

Be assured that First Advantage will be reviewing the rule and commenting further as appropriate.

Although First Advantage Global Compliance will provide additional guidance and commentary on the Final Rule as soon as possible, following is the text from the Rule’s Summary.

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 4910-9X
Office of the Secretary
49 CFR Part 40
[Docket DOT-OST-2016-0189]
RIN 2105-AE58
Procedures for Transportation Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing Programs: Addition of Certain Schedule II Drugs to the Department of Transportation’s Drug-Testing Panel and Certain Minor Amendments

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary of Transportation (OST), U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Department of Transportation is amending its drug-testing program regulation to add hydrocodone, hydromorphone, oxymorphone, and oxycodone to its drug testing panel; add methylenedioxyamphetamine as an initial test analyte; and remove methylenedioxyethylamphetamine as a confirmatory test analyte. The revision of the drug testing panel harmonizes DOT regulations with the revised HHS Mandatory Guidelines established by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for Federal drug-testing programs for urine testing. This final rule clarifies certain existing drug-testing program provisions and definitions, makes technical amendments, and removes the requirement for employers and Consortium/Third Party Administrators to submit blind specimens.

Special Note:

Although First Advantage’s Global Compliance Team receives and tracks critically important regulatory updates and guidance from the Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy and Compliance (ODAPC) through the ODAPC List Serve, communicates such information, and has encouraged DOT covered employers to subscribe to the ODAPC List serve in many of our FADV E-Newsletter publications, there is no better time than the present to receive such updates right to your desk top via e-mail from ODAPC. It is simple to subscribe and the reward is being in the know as quickly as possible. Please note that only important notices are communicated.

Please note that Final Rule requires certain service agents to sign up for the List Serve by the effective date of the Rule, which is January 1, 2018.  As summarized and explained in the Preamble of the Final Rule at page and as included in the sections related to key persons in the DOT testing process in the Preamble throughout the Rule text:

H Subscribing to the ODAPC list-serve
The rationale for the Department’s decision to require key persons in the DOT testing
process to subscribe to the ODAPC, and our response to comments on the proposal do so, are found in the “Main Policy Issues” portion of this preamble. The Department is adopting the proposed language without change. The affected provisions are §§ 40.33 (collectors), 40.12 (MROs), 40.213 (BATs/STTs), and 40.281 (SAPs).

To receive news and updates electronically regarding DOT Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing, you may voluntarily subscribe to DOT’s e-mail notification system “GovDelivery”. Once subscribed, you will also have the option of selecting from a variety of DOT related content categories.

To subscribe:  Just go to: https://www.transportation.gov/odapc/get-odapc-email-updates