Drug and Alcohol Testing Precautions Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic Numerous articles can be found about public precautions amid the coronavirus outbreak, but I have only been able to find a few articles addressing clinician precautions.  The clinician-focused articles I have found thus far address specific precautions when administrating healthcare or dental services to a patient […]

Will mouthwash interfere with the results of a breath alcohol test? This question is often posed during one of our training classes. Enough so that we spend time demonstrating the effects of what we call residual mouth alcohol, so that alcohol testing technicians are adequately prepared when they encounter a situation where a subject claims […]

EBT Calibration: The most misunderstood term in breath alcohol testing One of the most important responsibilities of a Breath Alcohol Technician (BAT) is to ensure that the Evidential Breath Tester (EBT) they use gives accurate results that can be relied upon.  Every student that we train as a BAT receives training in how to check […]

CDL Clearinghouse is Here: What Collectors and Alcohol Testing Technicians Must Do A couple of months ago we wrote about the new CDL Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse, touching on some of the responsibilities of drug and alcohol professionals. In case you missed that article which outlines what the CDL Clearinghouse is and its purpose, you […]

From “Semi-Retired” to “Mostly-Retired,” and a new President. I think that I am typical of many business owners in that I’ve found it hard to leave the business into which I have put so much of my life.  I have had a reluctance to retire from the business I founded 37 years ago, even though […]

Preparing for the CDL Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse The CDL Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse will be operational on January 6, 2020. The clearinghouse will be a database of positive drug and alcohol test results for Commercial Driver License (CDL) holders that employers will be required to check prior to putting a new employee to work.  […]

Does the DOT require EBTs to be recalibrated every 2 years? Very recently I paid a visit to a customer at an occupational health clinic to demonstrate a new device. During our visit, one of the meeting attendees compellingly posed the question, “Does the DOT require the operator to send their EBT back to the […]

Fentanyl Safety Information for Law Enforcement Fentanyl is a dangerous synthetic opioid, 100 times more potent than morphine; a lethal dose is 2 mg. Law Enforcement and First Responder personnel who may come into contact with substances that may contain fentanyl should take precautions to avoid exposure to fentanyl. Exposure Risks • Life-threatening risk of […]

AlcoPro will soon introduce a new “drug residue surface test” product that can detect and identify the presence of several drugs, including fentanyl, from the residue on various surfaces and in powder and liquid form. Fentanyl is a very dangerous drug; a lethal dose is 2 mg. While researching best practices for law enforcement and […]