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| The NIDA 5 |  In the late 1980's in the USA drug testing began operate with the testing of certain federal employees and specified DOT regulated occupations. Drug testing tendency and processes are established and regulated by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, formerly under the direction of the National Institute on Drug Abuse or NIDA. It requires that companies who use professional drivers, certain federal employers, specified safety sensitive transportation and/or oil and gas related occupations, and test them for the presence of certain drugs.
Decades ago, these test classes were established. They include five drug groups:
1. Cannabinoids (marijuana, hashish).
2. Cocaine (cocaine, crack, benzoylecognine).
3. Amphetamines (amphetamines, methamphetamine, speed).
4. Opiates (heroin, opium, codeine, morphine).
5. Phencyclidine (PCP).
While NIDA instructions only allow labs to report quantitative results for the "NIDA-5" on their official NIDA tests, many drug testing labs and on-site tests also offer a wider or "more appropriate" set of drug screens which are more reflective of current drug abuse patterns. These tests include synthetic pain killers such as Hydrocodone, Oxycodone, Oxymorphone, Hydromorphone, benzodiazepines and barbiturates in other drug panels.
The confirmation test (usually GCMS) can show the difference between ecstasy and methamphetamine. In the absence of detectable amounts of methamphetamine, the lab will either report the positive or negative result as for MDMA. What the lab reports to the client depends upon whether MDMA was included in the panel as something to be tested for.
In the early 1990s, Gamma-hydroxy-butyrate (GHB) was not regularly tested. However, with the increasing use of drugs, some laboratories have added it as an optional test. GHB is rare in pre-employment screening, but is commonly checked for in suspected cases of drug overdose, date rape and post-mortem toxicology tests. Ketamine may or may not be tested for depending upon the preferences of the entity paying for the test, though testing for it is uncommon. In general, the greater the number of drugs tested for, the higher the price of the test, so many employers stick to the NIDA 5 for financial reasons.
Other drugs, such as propoxyphene, Demerol, methadone and fentanyl are not usually tested for in most pre-employment situations. These drugs are more likely to be included in tests for such demographic groups as drug rehab patients, healthcare workers and lawyers.
Hallucinogens other than cannabis and PCP, such as mushrooms (psilocybin), LSD, and peyote (mescaline) are rarely tested for.
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