§ 26.153 - Using certified laboratories for testing specimens.

§ 26.153 Using certified laboratories for testing urine specimens.

Cross Reference

Link to an amendment published at 87 FR 71459, Nov. 22, 2022.

(a) Licensees and other entities who are subject to this part shall use only laboratories certified under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs [published in the Federal Register on April 11, 1988 (53 FR 11970), and as amended, June 9, 1994 (59 FR 29908), November 13,1998 (63 FR 63483), and April 13, 2004 (69 FR 19643)] for specimen validity and drug testing, except as permitted under § 26.31(d)(3)(ii). Information concerning the current certification status of laboratories is available from the Division of Workplace Programs, Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Room 815, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockwall 2 Bldg., Rockville, Maryland 20857. HHS-certified laboratories as defined in § 26.5.

(b) HHS-certified laboratories shall have the capability, at the same premises, to perform both initial and confirmatory tests for specimen validity and for each drug and drug metabolite for which the HHS-certified laboratory provides services to the licensee or other entity.

(c) An HHS-certified laboratory may not subcontract and shall perform all work with its own personnel and equipment unless otherwise authorized by the licensee or other entity.

(d) Licensees and other entities shall use only HHS-certified laboratories that agree to follow the same rigorous specimen testing, quality control, and chain - of - custody procedures when testing for more stringent cutoff levels as may be specified by licensees and other entities for the classes of drugs identified in this part, and for any other substances included in the licensees' or other entities' panels.

(e) Before awarding a contract to an HHS-certified laboratory, the licensee or other entity shall ensure that qualified personnel conduct a pre-award inspection and evaluation of the procedural aspects of the laboratory's drug testing operations. However, if an HHS-certified laboratory loses its certification, in whole or in part, a licensee or other entity may immediately begin using another HHS-certified laboratory that is being used by another licensee or entity who is subject to this part, as permitted by § 26.41(g)(5).

(f) All contracts between licensees or other entities who are subject to this part and HHS-certified laboratories must require the laboratory to implement all applicable requirements of this part. At a minimum, licensees' and other entities' contracts with HHS-certified laboratories must include the following requirements:

(1) Laboratory facilities shall comply with the applicable provisions of any State licensor requirements;

(2) The laboratory shall make available qualified personnel to testify in an administrative or disciplinary proceeding against an individual when that proceeding is based on urinalysis results reported by the HHS-certified laboratory;

(3) The laboratory shall maintain test records in confidence, consistent with the requirements of § 26.37, and use them with the highest regard for individual privacy.

(4) Consistent with the principles established in section 503 of Public Law 100-71, any employee of a licensee or other entity who is the subject of a drug test (or his or her representative designated under § 26.37(d)) shall, on written request, have access to the laboratory's records related to his or her validity and drug test and any records related to the results of any relevant certification, review, or revocation-of-certification proceedings;

(5) The laboratory may not enter into any relationship with the licensee's or other entity's MRO(s) that may be construed as a potential conflict of interest, including, but not limited to, the relationships described in § 26.183(b), and may not derive any financial benefit by having a licensee or other entity use a specific MRO; and

(6) The laboratory shall permit representatives of the NRC and any licensee or other entity using the laboratory's services to inspect the laboratory at any time, including unannounced inspections.

(g) If licensees or other entities use a form other than the current Federal custody-and-control formCCF, licensees and other entities shall provide a memorandum to the laboratory explaining why a non-Federal form CCF was used, but must ensure, at a minimum, that the form used contains all the required information on the Federal custody-and-control formCCF.

[73 FR 17176, Mar. 31, 2008, as amended at 74 FR 38328, Aug. 3, 2009; 87 FR 71459, Nov. 22, 2022]