US Drug Test Centers is a proud member of the Drug and Alcohol Testing Industry Association and participates in many of their training, webinars, and annual conferences each year. This year, the DATIA conference was held in Las Vegas, and US Drug Test Centers attended with some of our team members
Mark Scharenbrioch opened the conference as the Opening Keynote. He explained the importance of building meaningful connections and being grateful for what you have each day. Following Mark was Patrice Kelly from the Department of Transportation. Patrice was able to give us updates on current regulations and compliance factors, discussed ECCF DOT drug testing, and showed drug test data.
There were many more courses regarding marijuana laws, state drug testing laws, public employee drug testing litigation landmines and how to avoid them, toxicology monitoring, the prevalence of synthetic cannabinoids in employee drug testing, and much more.
One of the courses was led by George Gilpatrick, who did an excellent presentation about collection sites bein in compliance. This is very important for you as a drug test donor or employer. If a collection site does not complete a drug test correctly, there could be major flaws, causing the test to be invalid and have to be repeated. It could also mean that there are gaps where the donor may be able to tamper with the specimen. Mr. Gilpatrick gave great advice on how collection sites can improve.
During the conference, we were able to get a chance to speak with Quest Diagnostics, one of the largest drug testing labs in the country. Although they weren't able to give us a specific date of when we will be able to use ECCFs for DOT drug testing, they did state that they should be up and running with ECCFs for DOT drug testing by July. They mentioned that through the transition, they are highly recommending all drug test sites that have internet access (mobile sites excluded) switch over to ECCFs. The more collection sites that switch to electronic forms, the more same-day testing you as the donor will be able to get in for.
Overall, after attending the conference this year, we believe that there are great new training, information, and resources coming out to help you as the employer. As always, we will keep our clients informed on all changes and news. For more employee or employer drug testing resources or if you have any questions, please contact our offices today to speak with one of our national customer service representatives.
Ashlee Arnold is one of the founders of US Drug Test Centers and is currently the Vice President. 
