The top executive at American Trucking Associations praised the chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee and his colleagues for calling on the Department of Health and Human Services to expedite standards for hair-test drug screening.
“Making sure America’s truck drivers are safe and drug-free is among our highest priorities,” said ATA President Chris Spear. “The inherent advantages of hair testing are clear, which is why the previous administration’s failure to act, as required by law, was deeply frustrating. That lack of action is having a real impact on the trucking industry.”
“Many trucking companies are using urinalysis to meet federal requirements while also paying the additional cost to conduct hair testing,” Spear added in a statement issued May 19.
Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.), chairman of the Commerce Committee, and John Boozman (R-Ark.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) reached out to HHS Secretary Tom Price to ask that federal guidelines on the screening standards be sped up, according to ATA.
Under the 2015 FAST Act highway law, the department was required to issue guidelines for hair testing by Dec. 4, 2016. Officials did not meet the deadline.
