No, the law stipulates that an applicant who tests positive for the unlawful use of any controlled dangerous substance shall not be considered for employment.  Therefore, if an applicant tests positive for any of the screened drugs, they cannot be considered for employment involving direct care related duties.

For pre-employment drug testing, the applicant can re-apply and be retested after 90 days. Please also refer to your agency’s drug testing policy. 

When an applicant (donor) receives a positive drug test result, the Medical Review Officer (MRO) through i3 screen will attempt to reach the applicant via phone to discuss the results. A Non-Contact Positive result means the donor/applicant receiving the positive drug test never returned the MRO’s phone call.  After 24 hours, the result gets released as a Non-Contact Positive. This is treated the same as a positive drug test result.

The applicant must contact the MRO to provide them with the requested documentation related to the positive result, for example prescription copies, etc. If the applicant does not provide the required information the test is considered positive. 

A negative dilute result means that there was too much water in the urine to get an accurate screening. If an applicant's test results return as Negative Dilute, ECCU requires that they are tested again within 24 hours.  If the results of the second test are negative-dilute, then the result counts as a Negative. As always, refer to your agency's drug testing policies. 

Test cancelled: This may happen due to an error in the lab, a poor specimen, altered specimen, or if the employee leaves the test site before completing the urine screen.   The MRO will to specify the error and the staff can retake the drug test.

Invalid results due to test cancelled: This may be due to a lab error or if the employee leaves the test site before completing the urine screen The MRO would be able to specify the error and the staff can retake the drug test. 

Negative Dilute: This test should be repeated within 24 hours and if the test result is the same or Negative, it is considered a Negative result. 

Inconclusive: There are various reasons for inconclusive results; contacting the MRO for clarification and guidance is the next step. Depending on the explanation, the MRO may require the staff to retake the drug test.