DEI Political Sensitivities or Government Inaction – Implications for Safety on our Highways

The “Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act of 2015”, commonly referred to as the FAST Act, (Public Law 114-94) recognized hair testing as an acceptable alternative to urine testing for conducting pre-employment drug testing of commercial motor vehicle operators. Congress required the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to enact scientific and technical guidelines for hair drug testing within one year, or by 2017.

However, as of 2025, HHS has yet to enact hair drug testing guidelines, with a revised proposal pushed back again until May 2025¹. Why has HHS continued to delay this critical step in reducing drug impaired driving by commercial truck drivers?

In 2017, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a division of HHS, initiated a review of the scientific literature and engaged with stakeholders to develop the proposed hair testing guidelines. The HHS put forward preliminary guidelines² in 2020 for federal workplace drug testing programs, beyond the hair drug testing of commercial truck drivers only, to also include thousands of federal government employees; an action that sparked considerable opposition.

Further, in its proposed guidelines, SAMHSA posed outdated notions that the agency felt required more careful consideration. For example, SAMHSA stated a primary concern was the possibility that darker hair may absorb drugs more readily than lighter hair, potentially introducing hair color and racial bias as factors in testing outcomes.

But this concern contradicted previous statements by HHS, SAMHSA, the Drug Testing Advisory Board (DTAB), and researchers at RTI International that hair drug testing does not discriminate, nor is it prone to false positives due to environmental factors.

Moreover, a 2011 U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) study³ conducted by RTI International researchers found that properly washing hair effectively resolves hair color or melanin concerns resulting from any environmental cocaine exposure.

To further debunk concerns regarding racial or hair color bias, the aforementioned DOJ study⁴ indicated that Asian hair has the highest melanin content. Yet recent peer-reviewed research⁵ has shown that Asians in general had the lowest hair drug testing failure rate.

Prior to these recent studies, and as far back as twenty (20) years ago—following significant research efforts—DTAB and SAMHSA proposed to establish scientific and technical guidelines for the testing of hair, sweat, and oral fluid specimens, in addition to urine specimens (Federal Register (69 FR 19675))⁶. The proposed revisions discounted criticisms of hair drug testing, including statements such as:

• “The examination of 500 positive hair samples for each of three drugs (cannabinoids, cocaine, and amphetamine) revealed little statistical evidence of selective binding of drugs to hair of a particular color.” (p. 19676)

• “The limited population studies published in peer-reviewed literature at this time do not indicate a significant association between hair color or race and drug analyte.” (p. 19675) and

• “…we can differentiate environmental contamination from actual use because of the presence of the metabolite, which is not present when environmental contamination is the source of the drug.” (p. 19675)

Given HHS, SAMHSA, and DTAB’s previous confidence in hair testing, the current nine-year delay and turnabout by HHS to complete its congressional mandate to approve hair drug testing is curious. Did this signal persistent government inaction or paralysis by indecision, for fear of running afoul of popular expectations in a highly charged DEI political climate? Have political sensitivities outweighed scientific evidence and the safety of our Nation’s roadways?

Will the promise of action in a Trump Administration prompt HHS to fulfil its congressional mandate in the FAST Act? Will HHS move forward to recognize hair drug testing of commercial truck drivers, or will the proposed DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) spending cuts at HHS⁷ pose yet another stumbling block; a wasted opportunity to reduce drug impairment on our Nation’s highways? Only time will tell.

Research Summary

“Drug Testing in the U.S. Trucking Industry:  Hair vs. Urine Samples and the Implications for Policy and the Industry,” Journal of Transportation Management, 30 (2), p. 9-24.

Authors:

Douglas Voss, PhD
Professor of Supply Chain Management
Scott E. Bennett Arkansas Highway Commission Endowed Chair
University of Central Arkansas

Yemisi Bolumole, PhD
Ryder Endowed Professor of Supply Chain Management
University of Tennessee

¹ https://www.freightwaves.com/news/new-drug-hair-testing-guidelines-delayed-until-may-2025 

² Department of Health and Human Services, 42 CFR Chapter I. Mandatory Guidelines for Federal
Workplace Drug Testing Programs, available at https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2020-09-10/pdf/2020-16432.pdf. Accessed February 13, 2025

³ Ropero-Miller, Jeri D. and Peter R. Stout, (2011), “Analysis of Cocaine Analytes in Human Hair II: Evaluation of Different Hair Color and Ethnicity Types,” US Department of Justice, RTI Center for Forensic Sciences, RTI Project No. 0211897.000

⁴ Ropero-Miller, Jeri D. and Peter R. Stout, (2011), “Analysis of Cocaine Analytes in Human Hair II: Evaluation of Different Hair Color and Ethnicity Types,” US Department of Justice, RTI Center for Forensic Sciences, RTI Project No. 0211897.000. (p.8)

⁵ Voss, M. Douglas and Joseph D. Cangelosi (2020), “Drug Testing in the U.S. Trucking Industry: Hair vs. Urine Samples and the Implications for Policy and the Industry,” Journal of Transportation Management, 30 (2), p. 9-24.

⁶ U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2004), “Proposed Revisions to Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs,” available at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2004/04/13/04-7984/proposed-revisions-to-mandatory-guidelines-for-federal-workplace-drug-testing-programs. Accessed January 7, 2025. will the proposed DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) spending cuts at HHS pose yet another stumbling block; a wasted opportunity to reduce drug impairment on our Nation’s highways? Only time will tell.

⁷ Lovelace, Berkeley, Jr. (2025), “DOGE and Trump may pose biggest hurdles for RFK Jr. at HHS”, NBC News, available at https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/rfk-jrs-biggest-challenges-hhs-secretary-doge-cuts-trumps-agenda-rcna191858. Accessed February 13, 2025.