ILLEGAL DRUG USE BY WORKERS HITS A LOW

Illegal drug use among workers in the United States fell to its
lowest level in nearly two decades in a trend driven in part by
tougher drug-testing practices, putting cold medicines behind the
counter and closing down methamphetamine labs in America.

Overall, workers testing positive for drugs fell to 4.1% in 2005,
Quest Diagnostics said Monday, the lowest percentage in the 17 years
that the giant workplace drug-testing company has been releasing
data. It started at 13.6% in 1988 and had fallen to 4.5% in 2003 and 2004.

The percentage of employees testing positive for methamphetamine also
tumbled, indicating a reversal of a trend that had become a concern
of employers in 2001 and 2002. Positive tests for amphetamines
declined 8% in 2005 and is down 45% since 2004.

Data for the first five months of the year also show amphetamine use
is continuing to decline. Employees testing positive for amphetamine
use fell by 10% from January through May.

Quest performs 7.3 million drug tests a year. Marijuana continues to
be by far the drug that appears most often in workplace drug tests,
although marijuana positives are down 20% since 2001.

"We were pleasantly surprised," says Barry Sample, director of
science and technology for Quest's employer solutions division.
"Methamphetamine is at the lowest" level "since 2002. Simply having a
drug-testing program is an effective deterrent."

It's an issue of importance to employers: More than 70% of substance
abusers hold a job, according to the American Council for Drug
Education. Drug use on the job leads to increased accident risks,
lower productivity, higher insurance costs and reduced profits.