What are the Terms Associated with Drug Testing in Maine?

Glossary Check

Bangor, ME (WorkersCompensation.com) -- Starting a new job often comes with the rite of passage that is a drug test. If you were in the State of Maine, would you know what the vocabulary surrounding those tests is?

Here's a look.

Confirmed Positive Result 

This means a result of a confirmation test that indicates the presence of a substance of use in accordance with the laboratory protocols at or above the cutoff level.

Negative Test Result 

If it's not positive, that means it's negative, and "negative" means a test result that indicates that:

a. A substance of use is not present in the tested sample; or

b. A substance of use is present in the tested sample in a concentration below the cutoff level.

Non-negative Test Result 

But actually, there's some tertium quid, and it turns out to be "non-negative," which means a test result that indicates the presence of a substance of use in the tested sample at or above the cutoff level of the test.

Substance Use Test 

This means any test procedure designed to take and analyze body fluids or materials from the body for the purpose of detecting the presence of substances of use. The term does not include tests designed to determine blood alcohol concentration levels from a sample of an individual's breath.

What types of tests are there?

(1) Screening test. This test is an initial substance use test performed through the use of immunoassay technology, chromatography, mass analysis, enzymatic technology (for blood alcohol), or a test technology of similar or greater accuracy and reliability, and which is used as a preliminary step in detecting the presence of substances of use.

(2) Confirmation test. This test is a second substance use test performed on a separate aliquot of a specimen to identify and quantify a specific drug or drug metabolite and verify the presence of a substance of use indicated by an initial non-negative test result. A confirmation test uses gas chromatography/mass spectrometry or liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry, except that blood alcohol will be confirmed using gas chromatography.

Substance of Use 

In Maine, "substance" means any scheduled drug, alcohol or other drug, or any of their metabolites.

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