Thursday, December 18, 2008
Cedar Grove Recovery, Port Angeles - Closed Dec 20-28
We have received notice that Cedar Grove Recovery collection site located in Port Angeles will be closed the week of Christmas. You can still contact them if you need to have a post accident or reasonable suspicion test collected. Call Gill at 360-808-1175 to make arrangements.
Monday, November 24, 2008
Holiday Hours 2008 & Year End Random Selection Information
As year 2008 draws to an end, we want to take this opportunity to thank you for your business. We hope you have a wonderful Christmas and 2009 brings many blessings to you.
On November 5th we ran our final random selection for year 2008. It is necessary to complete all random selections you receive even if you have reached your annual testing compliance rates (50% for drug and 10% for alcohol). Please note: All random tests for the November selection period need to be completed by 12/15/08. Feel free to contact our office if you have any questions about your selections or random drug testing pool and we would be happy to assist you.
Please review our holiday hours for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Day. For your convenience, I have also included our Lab and MRO holiday hours. Collection site hours will vary by location.
MBG Management Services, Inc.
Closed Thursday, November 27th - Friday November 28th - Thanksgiving
Closed Thursday, December 25th – Christmas
Closed Thursday, January 1st - New Years Day
PacLab/PAML Laboratory –
Closed Thursday, November 27th - Thanksgiving
Closed Thursday, December 25th – Christmas (also closing early Christmas Eve, Dec 24th)
Closed Thursday, January 1st - New Years Day
Quest Laboratory
Closed Thursday, November 27th, open Friday, November 28th 7am-2pm - Thanksgiving
Closed Thursday, December 25th – Christmas (12/24 & 12/26 hours: 7am-2pm)
Closed Thursday, January 1st - New Years Day
WPCI/MRO
Closed Thursday, November 27th - Friday November 28th - Thanksgiving
Closed Thursday, December 25th – Christmas (may also close early 12/24, 12/26 & 12/31)
Closed Thursday, January 1st - New Years Day
Again, thank you for your business. It is truly our pleasure to serve you.
On November 5th we ran our final random selection for year 2008. It is necessary to complete all random selections you receive even if you have reached your annual testing compliance rates (50% for drug and 10% for alcohol). Please note: All random tests for the November selection period need to be completed by 12/15/08. Feel free to contact our office if you have any questions about your selections or random drug testing pool and we would be happy to assist you.
Please review our holiday hours for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Day. For your convenience, I have also included our Lab and MRO holiday hours. Collection site hours will vary by location.
MBG Management Services, Inc.
Closed Thursday, November 27th - Friday November 28th - Thanksgiving
Closed Thursday, December 25th – Christmas
Closed Thursday, January 1st - New Years Day
PacLab/PAML Laboratory –
Closed Thursday, November 27th - Thanksgiving
Closed Thursday, December 25th – Christmas (also closing early Christmas Eve, Dec 24th)
Closed Thursday, January 1st - New Years Day
Quest Laboratory
Closed Thursday, November 27th, open Friday, November 28th 7am-2pm - Thanksgiving
Closed Thursday, December 25th – Christmas (12/24 & 12/26 hours: 7am-2pm)
Closed Thursday, January 1st - New Years Day
WPCI/MRO
Closed Thursday, November 27th - Friday November 28th - Thanksgiving
Closed Thursday, December 25th – Christmas (may also close early 12/24, 12/26 & 12/31)
Closed Thursday, January 1st - New Years Day
Again, thank you for your business. It is truly our pleasure to serve you.
Direct Observation for Return to Duty & Follow Up Testing
We have received the following notice from the DOT - Office of Drug & Alcohol Policy & Compliance:
Published Thursday, 11/20/08 in the Federal Register is a Final Rule dealing with 40.67(b) –direct observation for return-to- duty and follow-up testing. That section of the regulation will read, pending further order of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, as follows:
§ 40.67 When and how is a directly observed collection conducted?
(b) As an employer, you may direct a collection under direct observation of an employee if the drug test is a return-to-duty test or a follow-up test.
This means that until further notice, directly observed collections for return to duty and follow up testing are not required, but the option of the employer.
Please contact our office if you have any questions and we would be happy to assist you.
Published Thursday, 11/20/08 in the Federal Register is a Final Rule dealing with 40.67(b) –direct observation for return-to- duty and follow-up testing. That section of the regulation will read, pending further order of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, as follows:
§ 40.67 When and how is a directly observed collection conducted?
(b) As an employer, you may direct a collection under direct observation of an employee if the drug test is a return-to-duty test or a follow-up test.
This means that until further notice, directly observed collections for return to duty and follow up testing are not required, but the option of the employer.
Please contact our office if you have any questions and we would be happy to assist you.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Special Hours at Valley Med Ctr - Auburn and Renton Occ Med Clinics
Auburn Occ Health Services located at 1000 Auburn Way S., Auburn will be open 6:00am-6:00pm, November 24 - 26, 2008. The clinic will be closed for the Thanksgiving holiday, Thursday & Friday, November 27-28, 2008.
Renton Occ Health Services located at 3600 Lind Avenue SW, Ste. 170, Renton will be closed the entire week of November 24-28 for building maintenance. During this time, please direct your employee to the Auburn Clinic or call contact our office for an alternate drug testing collection site in your area.
Renton Occ Health Services located at 3600 Lind Avenue SW, Ste. 170, Renton will be closed the entire week of November 24-28 for building maintenance. During this time, please direct your employee to the Auburn Clinic or call contact our office for an alternate drug testing collection site in your area.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Breaking News About the Direct Observation Requirement for DOT Return-to-duty and Follow-up Tests
Filed today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit temporarily delayed the November 1st Direct Observation (DO) requirement for DOT return-to-duty and follow-up tests. This is an "administrative stay" until the Court completes its review on the matter. Therefore, direct observation for return-to-duty and follow-up testing will continue to be an employer option, rather than mandatory. This temporary stay is only regarding 49 CFR §40.67 (b).
You may view the complete Stay Order at http://datia.org/AdminStayOrder.pdf
You may view the complete Stay Order at http://datia.org/AdminStayOrder.pdf
Monday, October 6, 2008
Supervisor Training for Reasonable Suspicion Testing, October 16, 2008
Please join us at our next Supervisor Training Seminar, “Dealing with the Employee in Crisis” on Thursday, October 16th from 8:30am-4:30pm at the La Quinta Inn in Tacoma, WA. This seminar exceeds DOT supervisor training requirements for reasonable suspicion testing and also serves as a great refresher course for any Designated Employer Representatives (DERs). Registration is $169 for Fit for Work Members which covers the seminar, resource materials and lunch. Please contact our office at 800-676-0522 and speak with Rochelle to register or for more information.
New "MBG No charge" Collection Site in Montesano, WA
MBG has a new "no charge" collection site in Montesano, WA. HarborCrest Behavioral Health just opened a drug screening facility located at 319 East Pioneer, Montesano; phone number 360-249-1980. They are open Tuesdays and Friday afternoons from 1pm to 4:30pm for drug screen collections and breath alcohol testing. This facility also offers easy truck parking and is a walk in clinic, no appointment needed. If you have not used a HarborCrest facility before for drug screen collections and/or breath alcohol testing, please contact MBG at 800-676-0522 to set up an account.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Breaking News Re: Direct Observation Collections and Changes to the Federal Rule
Dear Valued Client,
We were notified late Friday the requirement that all return-to-duty and follow-up tests be conducted as direct observed collections will be delayed until November 1, 2008. This will allow Department of Transportation to have a comment period to further evaluate this change.
Here are the Federal Rule changes that did take effect Monday, August 25, 2008:
1. It is now mandatory for laboratories to test all DOT specimens for specimen validity (i.e., adulterants and urine substitutes) and for laboratories to follow all Department of Health and Human Resources (HHS) protocols for doing so.
2. During observed collections, items such as prosthetic devices designed to carry clean urine will be checked for by observers with both male and female donors. The observer will have the employee raise and lower clothing, and then put it back into place for the observed collection.
3. In an effort to thwart those who would manufacturer products designed to adulterate specimens, the Final Rule will no longer have easy-to-follow tables and charts outlining the adulterants for which laboratories are testing and the scientific cutoff levels at which laboratories are testing them.
4. Definitions in the Final Rule have been changed to harmonize with the HHS.
5. The following occurrences are now considered a refusal to test:
a. The donor is found to possess or wear a prosthetic or other device that
could be used to interfere with the collection process,
b. The donor refused to follow collector instructions during an observed
collection process to raise and lower clothing as specified in regulations, and
c. The donor admits to the collector or MRO that he/she adulterated or
substituted the specimen.
6. The Final Rule will close the potentially endless loop on invalid specimen results; and employees requiring negative results [for example, pre-employment tests], when they have medical reasons for providing invalid results, will be able to obtain them through medical evaluations to rule out signs and symptoms of drug use.
7. The Final Rule will streamline and simplify the potential myriad of complicated laboratory-confirmed and MRO-verified drug test results.
8. The Final Rule requires drug-testing laboratories to report to DOT semi-annual statistical summaries on all of their DOT testing.
We were notified late Friday the requirement that all return-to-duty and follow-up tests be conducted as direct observed collections will be delayed until November 1, 2008. This will allow Department of Transportation to have a comment period to further evaluate this change.
Here are the Federal Rule changes that did take effect Monday, August 25, 2008:
1. It is now mandatory for laboratories to test all DOT specimens for specimen validity (i.e., adulterants and urine substitutes) and for laboratories to follow all Department of Health and Human Resources (HHS) protocols for doing so.
2. During observed collections, items such as prosthetic devices designed to carry clean urine will be checked for by observers with both male and female donors. The observer will have the employee raise and lower clothing, and then put it back into place for the observed collection.
3. In an effort to thwart those who would manufacturer products designed to adulterate specimens, the Final Rule will no longer have easy-to-follow tables and charts outlining the adulterants for which laboratories are testing and the scientific cutoff levels at which laboratories are testing them.
4. Definitions in the Final Rule have been changed to harmonize with the HHS.
5. The following occurrences are now considered a refusal to test:
a. The donor is found to possess or wear a prosthetic or other device that
could be used to interfere with the collection process,
b. The donor refused to follow collector instructions during an observed
collection process to raise and lower clothing as specified in regulations, and
c. The donor admits to the collector or MRO that he/she adulterated or
substituted the specimen.
6. The Final Rule will close the potentially endless loop on invalid specimen results; and employees requiring negative results [for example, pre-employment tests], when they have medical reasons for providing invalid results, will be able to obtain them through medical evaluations to rule out signs and symptoms of drug use.
7. The Final Rule will streamline and simplify the potential myriad of complicated laboratory-confirmed and MRO-verified drug test results.
8. The Final Rule requires drug-testing laboratories to report to DOT semi-annual statistical summaries on all of their DOT testing.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Updated Collection Site Listings
Last week we sent out updated Quest and PacLab collection site listings with our RSS Monthly Employer Reports. These lists reflect new hours and/or new pricing for the collection sites. The most current collection site information is always posted at the FFW Members Section of our MBG Website (http://www.mbgmanagement.com/).
Please feel free to contact our office if you have any questions or if you need us to set up a new collection site for you.
Have a GREAT day!
Please feel free to contact our office if you have any questions or if you need us to set up a new collection site for you.
Have a GREAT day!
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Final Rule on Specimen Validity Testing from the Department of Transportation (DOT), Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy & Compliance (ODAPC)
Please note: The greatest impact of these changes will be that observed collections are now required on all Follow Up and Return to Duty Testing. Please see items 2b and 2c below. It will also change the process of the observed collection. Please see item 2b.
In summary:
1. This Final Rule makes it mandatory for laboratories to test all DOT specimens for specimen validity (i.e., adulterants and urine substitutes) and for laboratories to follow all Department of Health and Human Resources (HHS) protocols for doing so.
2. Observed collections will afford less privacy in order to guard against employee use of items designed specifically to beat the testing process.
a. Directly observed collections will continue to occur only when there is a specific reason to believe that an employee may be attempting, or have sufficient reason, to evade the testing process.
b. Items such as prosthetic devices designed to carry clean urine will be checked for by observers with both male and female donors. The observer will have the employee raise and lower clothing, and then put it back into place for the observed collection.
c. Observed collections will now be required, rather than optional, for all return-to-duty and follow-up drug testing.
3. In an effort to thwart those who would manufacturer products designed to adulterate specimens, the Final Rule will no longer have easy-to-follow tables and charts outlining the adulterants for which laboratories are testing and the scientific cutoff levels at which laboratories are testing them.
4. Definitions in the Final Rule have been changed to harmonize with the HHS.
5. During an invalid result Medical Review Officer (MRO) review, an employee admission of adulterating or substituting a specimen is now a refusal to test.
6. Pursuant to MRO requests, the Final Rule will close the potentially endless loop on invalid specimen results; and employees requiring negative results [for example, pre-employment tests], when they have medical reasons for providing invalid results, will be able to obtain them through medical evaluations to rule out signs and symptoms of drug use.
7. The Final Rule will also streamline and simplify the potential myriad of complicated laboratory-confirmed and MRO-verified drug test results.
8. The Final Rule requires drug testing laboratories to report to DOT semi-annual statistical summaries on all of their DOT testing.
The full text of this ruling is online at: http://www.dot.gov/ost/dapc/testingpubs/FR_20080625_FINALR_SVT.pdf
In summary:
1. This Final Rule makes it mandatory for laboratories to test all DOT specimens for specimen validity (i.e., adulterants and urine substitutes) and for laboratories to follow all Department of Health and Human Resources (HHS) protocols for doing so.
2. Observed collections will afford less privacy in order to guard against employee use of items designed specifically to beat the testing process.
a. Directly observed collections will continue to occur only when there is a specific reason to believe that an employee may be attempting, or have sufficient reason, to evade the testing process.
b. Items such as prosthetic devices designed to carry clean urine will be checked for by observers with both male and female donors. The observer will have the employee raise and lower clothing, and then put it back into place for the observed collection.
c. Observed collections will now be required, rather than optional, for all return-to-duty and follow-up drug testing.
3. In an effort to thwart those who would manufacturer products designed to adulterate specimens, the Final Rule will no longer have easy-to-follow tables and charts outlining the adulterants for which laboratories are testing and the scientific cutoff levels at which laboratories are testing them.
4. Definitions in the Final Rule have been changed to harmonize with the HHS.
5. During an invalid result Medical Review Officer (MRO) review, an employee admission of adulterating or substituting a specimen is now a refusal to test.
6. Pursuant to MRO requests, the Final Rule will close the potentially endless loop on invalid specimen results; and employees requiring negative results [for example, pre-employment tests], when they have medical reasons for providing invalid results, will be able to obtain them through medical evaluations to rule out signs and symptoms of drug use.
7. The Final Rule will also streamline and simplify the potential myriad of complicated laboratory-confirmed and MRO-verified drug test results.
8. The Final Rule requires drug testing laboratories to report to DOT semi-annual statistical summaries on all of their DOT testing.
The full text of this ruling is online at: http://www.dot.gov/ost/dapc/testingpubs/FR_20080625_FINALR_SVT.pdf
New reporting guidelines for Refusals/Positives effective 6/13/08
The interim final rule, authorizes employers to disclose to State commercial driver licensing (CDL) authorities the drug and alcohol violations of employees who hold CDLs and operate commercial motor vehicles (CMVs), when a State law requires such reporting. This rule also permits third-party administrators (TPAs) to provide the same information to State CDL licensing authorities where State law requires the TPAs to do so for owner-operator CMV drivers with CDLs.
Note: Washington and Oregon State Law already require all positives and/or refusals be reported to the State Department of Licensing so this process will not change.
Note: Washington and Oregon State Law already require all positives and/or refusals be reported to the State Department of Licensing so this process will not change.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Skagit Valley Medical Ctr - Occupational Med Department has moved!
Skagit Valley Med Center Occupational Medicine has moved to 1400 E. Kincaid Street, Mt. Vernon on Level 1 of the Maynard L. John Building. Skagit Valley Med Center is offering an open house and dedication of their new building on Tuesday, May 13th at 5:30pm. The Occupational Medicine department has increased the size of their exam rooms and now offer a private entrance for drug testing. This site is one of our MBG preferred sites, meaning that you will only pay $5.00 for collection services in addition to the price of the drug screen. They also offer Breath Alcohol testing. Contact our office if you are interested in using this site and we would be happy to assist you.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Upcoming Supervisor Training, March 20, 2008, Tacoma WA
Please join us for our upcoming Supervisor Training “Dealing with the Employee in Crisis” at the La Quinta in Tacoma, WA on March 20, 2008 from 8:30am-4:30pm. Registration for our Fit for Work Members is $169.00 per person and includes a full day seminar, resource materials and a catered lunch.
This class exceeds DOT Supervisor Training requirements. Supervisors will learn:
• How to recognize substance abuse and other crisis behaviors
• How the drugs of abuse affect performance and safety
• How to properly confront employees in crisis avoiding intrusion into their privacy yet correcting the root of the performance problem
• And much more including answering questions about administrating your drug testing program
If you are a new DER (Designated Employer Representative) or just need a refresher course on this subject, this is a valuable, informative seminar. To register, send the names of those you wish to register to info@mbgmanagement.com and then forward a check payable to MBG Management Services (3521 Hollywood Drive NE, Olympia, WA 98516) in the amount of $169/registration to confirm your registration. Contact our office at 360-493-0522 or info@mbgmanagement.com if you have any questions or need additional information.
Please note: Cancellations received within 48 hours of this event will be charged $25.00 due to catering requirements.
This class exceeds DOT Supervisor Training requirements. Supervisors will learn:
• How to recognize substance abuse and other crisis behaviors
• How the drugs of abuse affect performance and safety
• How to properly confront employees in crisis avoiding intrusion into their privacy yet correcting the root of the performance problem
• And much more including answering questions about administrating your drug testing program
If you are a new DER (Designated Employer Representative) or just need a refresher course on this subject, this is a valuable, informative seminar. To register, send the names of those you wish to register to info@mbgmanagement.com and then forward a check payable to MBG Management Services (3521 Hollywood Drive NE, Olympia, WA 98516) in the amount of $169/registration to confirm your registration. Contact our office at 360-493-0522 or info@mbgmanagement.com if you have any questions or need additional information.
Please note: Cancellations received within 48 hours of this event will be charged $25.00 due to catering requirements.
Friday, February 15, 2008
President's Day Holiday
A reminder that our office will be closed for the President's Day holiday, February 18, 2008. Quest, PacLab and Labcorp laboratories as well as our MRO, WPCI will be operating under normal business hours. MBG will resume normal business hours Tuesday, February 19th.
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