Order a Drug Test in North Carolina

Pre-Employment Drug Testing in North Carolina

North Carolina employers generally may require a drug test as a condition of employment when the requirement is disclosed and applied consistently. Applicant samples may use a single-use preliminary screen, but a positive result generally must be confirmed by an approved laboratory unless the applicant signs a written waiver at or after the preliminary result.

• Disclose the testing requirement before the applicant tests.
• Use consistent criteria for applicants seeking the same type of position.
• Choose a THC-inclusive or no-THC panel that matches the written policy.
• Use documented collection, chain-of-custody, confirmation, and review procedures.
• Address the employer’s policy for positive, negative, and refusal outcomes.
• Give the applicant the required initial notice of rights and responsibilities.
• Use an approved laboratory for confirmation of a non-negative screen.

Employer Testing Programs

A clear North Carolina policy should define covered workers, substances, specimen types, testing reasons, selection methods, refusals, confirmation and Medical Review Officer procedures, consequences, confidentiality, and medication review. Current-employee screens must be performed by an approved laboratory, and every positive current-employee screen must receive a scientifically accepted confirmation test.

• Use reasonable, sanitary collection conditions that preserve dignity.
• Use documented collection, chain-of-custody, confirmation, and review procedures.
• Maintain documented chain of custody and protect result confidentiality.
• Retain confirmed-positive samples for at least 90 days.
• Provide written positive-result and retest-rights notice within 30 days.
• Limit result access to people with a legitimate business need.
• Keep DOT and non-DOT policies, forms, and orders separate.

Select the panel and enter the donor information first. After the case is created, checkout searches available collection sites using the North Carolina city, ZIP code, or area entered for the donor.

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Controlled Substance Examination Regulation Act

The Act protects applicants and employees from unreliable or inadequate examinations and sets procedures for controlled-substance testing. It applies when an employer or prospective employer doing business in North Carolina requests or requires a covered examination.

A written policy should identify covered positions, substances, testing reasons, selection methods, notice, specimen collection, laboratory confirmation, medical review, confidentiality, refusals, retesting, and consequences.

Official state sources: N.C. Department of Labor — Drug Testing and G.S. 95-230

Collection and Screening Requirements

Samples must be collected under reasonable and sanitary conditions, preserve individual dignity to the extent practicable, and use procedures designed to prevent substitution or interference. Applicant and employee samples may be collected on-site or at an approved laboratory.

An applicant may receive a preliminary single-use screen. A current employee’s screening test may be performed only by an approved laboratory.

Official state law: G.S. 95-232(b)-(c)

Confirmation and Sample Retention

A positive applicant screen must be confirmed by an approved laboratory using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry or an equivalent scientifically accepted method unless the applicant signs a written waiver at or after receiving the preliminary result.

Every positive current-employee screen must be confirmed. The confirming laboratory must preserve part of a confirmed-positive sample for at least 90 days after delivering the result.

Official state law: G.S. 95-232(c1)-(d)

Notice, Retesting, Confidentiality, and Cost

Administrative rules require initial notice of rights and responsibilities. Within 30 days after a positive result is delivered to the employer, the examinee must receive written notice of the result and retesting rights. A confirmed-positive sample may be retested at the same or another approved laboratory during the retention period.

The examinee pays reasonable retest-related costs, while the examiner generally pays other examination expenses. Test-related information must be kept confidential except as authorized.

Official state rules: 13 NCAC 20

No Duty to Test; Federal Exemptions

The Act establishes procedures but does not require an employer to conduct controlled-substance examinations. Employers should define testing reasons in the written policy and apply them consistently to similarly situated applicants and employees.

Controlled-substance examinations required by the U.S. Department of Transportation or Nuclear Regulatory Commission are exempt from Article 20 and follow the applicable federal program instead.

Official state laws: G.S. 95-233 and G.S. 95-235

Workers’ Compensation and Intoxication

G.S. 97-12 bars compensation when an injury or death was proximately caused by intoxication or by being under the influence of a non-prescribed controlled substance. The party claiming the forfeiture carries the burden of proof.

A scientifically acceptable blood or other medical test result consistent with intoxication or being under the influence creates a rebuttable presumption of impairment. The statute defines impairment by appreciable loss of normal bodily or mental control at the time of injury.

Official state law: G.S. 97-12

Marijuana Remains Illegal

North Carolina’s official cannabis advisory council states that marijuana containing more than 0.3% delta-9 THC remains illegal for adult and medical use and that the state has not enacted a comprehensive medical-cannabis program.

Proposed legislation should not be treated as current law. Employers may continue to prohibit marijuana possession, use, and impairment under a written policy.

Official state source: NCDHHS — North Carolina Advisory Council on Cannabis

Limited Hemp-Extract Treatment Law

North Carolina has a narrow Epilepsy Alternative Treatment Act permitting qualifying use of hemp extract for children with intractable epilepsy. This limited program is not a comprehensive medical-marijuana law and does not create broad workplace protection for a THC-positive result.

Employers should still review medication explanations, the underlying medical condition, and disability-accommodation duties before making a final decision.

Official state source: NCDHHS — Epilepsy Alternative Treatment Act

THC Testing Follows State Procedures

When an employer tests for marijuana or THC as a controlled substance, the same state collection, approved-laboratory, confirmation, retention, notice, confidentiality, and retesting rules apply.

A confirmed laboratory result establishes the presence of the tested substance or metabolite; an employer should separately evaluate policy coverage, medication information, job duties, observed conduct, and the stated testing reason.

Official state law: G.S. 95-232

Drug-Free Workplace and Federal Rules

Legally sold hemp or hemp-derived cannabinoid products can still produce a THC-positive drug test. Product availability does not require an employer to remove marijuana from a lawful non-DOT policy or excuse on-duty use or impairment.

Federal DOT marijuana testing remains mandatory for covered safety-sensitive work. DOT-required tests are exempt from North Carolina Article 20 and follow federal procedures. A no-THC non-DOT panel cannot replace a DOT test.

Official sources: G.S. 95-235 and U.S. DOT — 49 CFR Part 40

DOT Rules Are Separate from Non-DOT Testing

A personal or employer non-DOT drug test should not be substituted for a test that is required under DOT regulations. DOT programs have specific requirements for test reasons, forms, collection procedures, laboratories, Medical Review Officers, refusals, records, and return-to-duty processes.

Federal source: U.S. Department of Transportation — 49 CFR Part 40

Examples of DOT-Regulated Industries

• Commercial motor carriers regulated by FMCSA.
• Aviation employers regulated by FAA.
• Railroad employers regulated by FRA.
• Public transit employers regulated by FTA.
• Pipeline operators regulated by PHMSA.
• Other covered transportation operations under federal rules.