LAW WOULD MAKE DEFRAUDING DRUG TESTS A CRIME

Members of the state House of Representatives are considering a law that
would make illegal defrauding a drug test or marketing products that would
aid in defrauding drug tests.

Senate Bill 1162 - which was passed unanimously by the state Senate July 18
- - sits in the House Rules Committee.

The bill would make it illegal to "sell, give away, distribute, or market
urine ... with the intent that it be used to defraud an alcohol or
screening test." Attempting to defeat urine drug screenings would also be
illegal.

Supporters of the legislation say it will help ensure workplace safety by
preventing those who abuse illegal substances from passing drug tests.
Opponents of the law say drug testing itself is fraudulent and must be
undermined.

The North Carolina Trucking Association supports the bill on the grounds it
improves safety on the road.

"Commercial truck drivers are mandated by federal law to take
pre-employment drug screens and also random drug screens as a way to ensure
that there aren't people out there driving 80,000 trucks while under the
influence of narcotics," said Charles Diehl, president of the North
Carolina Trucking Association. "When that system is compromised by someone
cheating on the drug screen ... then we feel like a threat to highway
safety has occurred."

Kenneth Curtis, owner of Hendersonville-based Privacy Protection Services,
sells drug-free urine samples from his business. He said his company is his
way of showing the ineffectiveness of current drug testing systems.

For $69, Curtis sells his customers a drug-free sample of urine, a pouch, a
tube, and a hand-warming device, none of which can be detected, his Web
site argues, even by a direct observer.

LSD, ecstasy, and mushrooms are not detected in most drug screenings and
further, the presence of drugs in the body does not necessarily mean an
individual's faculties are impaired.

Curtis said his business is meant to highlight problems with the drug
testing industry.

"What we're after is an impairment system," he said.

State Rep. Carolyn Russell (R-Wayne) agrees with the proposed legislation.

"I think it's a good idea that we definitely make it a crime so people will
not be able to do this," Russell said, pointing out that drugs themselves
are illegal. "It flies in the face of all law enforcement and the statutes
we have on the books."

Beverly Alston, assistant manager of the Employment Security Commission,
said she routinely asks prospective hires if they can pass a drug test
before sending them to interview for a job.

"I'm not doing them any favors or the employer any favors by sending them
someone who can't pass a drug test," said Alston. "Especially a place with
machinery, where there's safety involved."

DuPont has been testing its employees for drugs - both as a condition of
employment and for cause - since the 1980s, but does not do random drug
testing.

"A major component to safety is being fit and ready for duty and when
(employees) are substance-impaired, their mind really isn't on safety,"
said Keith Montgomery, human resources manager at DuPont.

Despite the fact that certain illegal substances are not usually detected
in drug tests, Montgomery said the tests are an important part of DuPont's
safety program.

"Nothing's ever going to be 100 percent foolproof," he said. "You should be
as vigilant as you can to try and root out as many problems as you can."

Caswell Center uses pre-employment drug tests for those applicants whose
jobs would involve direct care of patients and conducts random tests of all
its employees.

"We've always had a safe workplace, we think, but to conduct those tests
and have a good safety program ... we think that helps us out a great
deal," said George Graham, human resources manager for Caswell.

According to information provided to Graham, drug testing costs the company
about $35 per person and between $6,000 and $10,000 annually, depending on
how many people are being considered for employment.

Curtis said he is skeptical of employers' use of the tests and noted that
pregnancy and HIV information can be gleaned from urine samples.

"[It's a] very dangerous system we have here with giving out body fluid
samples without any protection," he said.

Pamela Sherry, senior vice-president of Investor Relations and Corporate
Communications at Laboratory Corporation of America - the company that
handles most drug tests - said that substance abuse tests do not include
pregnancy or HIV tests and thus, that such information is not provided to
employers.

Curtis operated his business in South Carolina until the South Carolina
General Assembly passed legislation similar to that now being considered by
North Carolina's General Assembly.