DRUG TESTING ENCOURAGES USE OF HARD DRUGS

As a drug policy reform activist, I believe substance abuse is a public
health problem that requires medical solutions, not incarceration. It's
heartening to me that drug courts are increasingly viewed as an alternative
to mandatory minimums, yet I can't help but worry about the emphasis placed
on drug testing. Urinalysis is actually counterproductive when it comes to
keeping people off drugs, at least in terms of the relative dangers of
different drugs.

Only one drug stays in the human body long enough to make urinalysis a
deterrent. That drug is marijuana, and the reason its metabolites
linger beyond a few days is because they are fat soluble. Hard drugs
like cocaine, heroin and ecstasy are water soluble and exit the human
body within 48 hours, sooner if the user chooses to flush his or her
system with water. Drug users are very much aware of this fact.

Why is this relevant? Because the growing use of heroin in America is,
in part, a result of drug testing. A drug user who takes a potentially
deadly drug like heroin on Friday night will test clean on Monday
morning. The same applies to ecstasy or cocaine. Ironically, the least
dangerous recreational drug is the only one whose use is discouraged
by testing. Americans need to know this before buying into an invasive
policy that encourages the use of hard drugs.

Finally, I would like to point out that the most commonly abused drug
and the one most often associated with violent behavior is almost
impossible to detect with urinalysis. That drug is alcohol, and it
takes far more lives every year than all other drugs combined.

Robert Sharpe
Washington, D.C.