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Ythan
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States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic
#25125456 - 04/09/18 10:46 AM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic washingtonpost.com
As part of a routine drug test, Adam Randall handed a vial of yellow liquid to a probation officer.
Although it looked like a urine sample from the 31-year-old — who was required to submit to testing after a previous conviction — authorities in Queensbury, N.Y., say it was not. They allege that Randall turned over a synthetic liquid he had sneaked into the probation office via a bottle stuffed into his pants, a substance so in demand that states are now taking steps to ban it: fake pee.
With the nation’s opioid crisis raging, rates of cocaine and methamphetamine abuse soaring and recreational marijuana use becoming legal in nine states and the District, the concern about clean drug tests, too, has increased. While people have long tried to cheat drug exams with an array of creative methods — such as providing other people’s urine, attempting to flush their systems with gallons of water or using herbal remedies — authorities say synthetic urine has become the new go-to trick.
So much so that states are enacting laws to ban the sale of fake urine, which retails for about $17 to $40 in head shops, truck stops and on the Internet, and is easy to purchase. The substance — made from chemicals and, some claim, uric acid — goes by names including “Monkey Whizz” and “UPass.” Authorities say the products give drug users a way to sidestep screening exams administered by police, courts and employers for safety and security.
Laws making it illegal to sell or use synthetic urine or cheat on a drug test are on the books in at least 18 states, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Indiana and New Hampshire banned synthetic urine last year. Bills to do so were introduced this year in Missouri and Mississippi.
Mississippi’s bill was dubbed the “Urine Trouble Act,” drawing snickers and groans in the State House. But its sponsors and others said that the jokey name belies a real problem: Truck drivers, people who operate heavy machinery and others can use the synthetic liquid to easily thwart a drug test, potentially creating public risks.
“Our employers are reporting to us a concern that more and more of their employees are using synthetic human urine to cheat on a drug test,” said Dan Gibson, executive director of the Mississippi Association of Self-Insurers, which has lobbied for the bill.
Mississippi state Rep. Willie Bailey (D), speaking at a hearing in Jackson, held a bottle of fake urine that came with instructions suggesting that users could microwave it to achieve body temperature. He said the substance has been a “hot seller” in truck stops statewide.
“They can’t keep it in stock,” he said.
The bill passed the Mississippi House but died in the Senate. Gibson said his members were troubled that the legislation failed; the association plans to lobby for another effort next year.
“Maybe we’ll call it ‘urine trouble again,’ ” Gibson said.
David Powell, executive director of the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council, has heard numerous accounts of people on probation getting caught with fake urine. They often try to slip it into cups while in the bathroom, where they are supposed to be providing urine samples.
“People can basically use it to avoid consequence with their employers and probation officers,” Powell said. “There’s just no other legitimate purpose for it.”
Companies nationwide have reported having trouble finding workers who can pass drug tests. The Federal Reserve reported in a “beige book” survey of economic activity last year that manufacturers have had difficulty hiring experienced or qualified employees, “with some citing candidates’ inability to pass drug tests or to consistently report to work.”
And when people see their livelihood or ability to stay out of jail as being dependent on passing a drug test, it can create a strong motivation to cheat on it.
“If it’s your job or you’re going to probation or you’re going to lose your kids, a lot of those folks will do anything to pass a drug test,” Powell said.
Randall was required to take a drug test as a condition of his probation. Police said the probation officer saw Randall holding a bottle of yellow liquid that he dropped into his underwear. Randall denied doing so, but police said he eventually turned the bottle over to the probation officer. Randall pleaded guilty to charges of tampering with physical evidence, a felony; his lawyer declined to comment on the case.
In some states, laws regarding fake urine have been spurred by tragedy.
Judy Tilton walked into her 21-year-old son’s room in 2015 and found him dead of a fentanyl overdose. Seth was cold to the touch, still sitting upright on his bed, a needle in his arm and a cellphone in his hand. He had been texting his drug dealer.
Overwhelmed with shock and grief, Tilton cleaned the room a few days later and stumbled upon an unopened bottle of synthetic urine, something that she didn’t even know existed.
“It just made me think and go, ‘Who else is using this?’ ” she said. “It could be a bus driver, it could be an aircraft pilot, a trucker driving down the road. They’re endangering everybody.”
Tilton, of New Hampshire, lobbied legislators to ban fake urine. She testified at the State House, showing lawmakers the box that she found in Seth’s room.
The U.S. Supreme Court first upheld the right to test for drugs in the workplace in 1989, and most of those tests now are conducted using urine samples. The federal government is looking at standardizing tests that use hair and saliva.
Barry Sample, director of science and technology for the Employer Solutions business of Quest Diagnostics, suggests that employers should rotate hair, saliva and urine tests to create an element of surprise for applicants and to make the options for possible cheats, such as fake urine, less useful.
But hair testing has been challenged in court, including by a group of black Boston Police officers who claim it is discriminatory because the texture of African American hair makes it more likely to yield false positives.
Most specimens undergo what is known as a five-panel test, during which they are screened for amphetamines, cocaine, marijuana, PCP and opioids.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration added a sixth — ecstasy — to the test administered to safety-sensitive workers. The agency approved testing federal workers for four prescription painkillers — OxyContin, Vicodin, Percocet and Dilaudid — last year, along with tests for heroin metabolites.
But urine testing remains the main method of detecting drugs in the body, and its private nature can be problematic.
“Urine tests are not observed,” Sample said. “It does afford those who want to cheat the opportunity to try to subvert the testing process.”
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Violet Wizard
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: Ythan]
#25125508 - 04/09/18 11:05 AM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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Quote:
Barry Sample, director of science and technology for the Employer Solutions business of Quest Diagnostics, suggests that employers should rotate hair, saliva and urine tests to create an element of surprise for applicants and to make the options for possible cheats, such as fake urine, less useful.
I cant believe someone with that title would suggest more testing in fact more variety so they make money across all their testing platforms. No way theres some secondary motive aside from the great public service they would be doing!
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durian_2008
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: Violet Wizard] 1
#25125637 - 04/09/18 11:59 AM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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I think that corrupt employers are using humanitarian intervention as an excuse to scam the taxpayers out of subsidies, rather than running a competitive business, in the real world. You don't have any actual work ethic, or the focus would be on productivity.
Rather than legislating blood chemistry, in and of itself, I am in favor of making it a factor in negligent homicide or property damage, where there is a nameable victim, and some calculable damage. If it causes you to do wrong, then, you should legitimately be judged for that.
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Konyap
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: durian_2008] 1
#25126164 - 04/09/18 03:51 PM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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the insurance companies partnered up with osha in the 80's to do this business that don't do this end up paying more money
it sucks, it's a health issue, not a criminal issue as there is no victim involved but as long as they can flag people for metabolites, not even the drug itself
unwanted search and seizure is a thing of the past can't even post a phone number on the internet it's too convienant
Edited by Konyap (04/09/18 03:51 PM)
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Stonehenge
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: Konyap]
#25126190 - 04/09/18 04:03 PM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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So go back to using other people's piss.
-------------------- “A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship.” (attributed to Alexis de Tocqueville political philosopher Circa 1835) Trade list http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/18047755
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Mr. Bojangles
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: Stonehenge]
#25126684 - 04/09/18 07:03 PM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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Quote:
Barry Sample, director of science and technology for the Employer Solutions business of Quest Diagnostics
What a perfect name for that position.
-------------------- "It is dangerous to be right in matters on which the established authorities are wrong." Francois-Marie Arouet
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LIBERTYNY
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: Mr. Bojangles]
#25126911 - 04/09/18 08:20 PM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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illegal urine . . .
Your smart toilet is now capable of giving you a situation for not flushing.
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durian_2008
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: LIBERTYNY]
#25127051 - 04/09/18 09:21 PM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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Unless someone is a habitual user, I don't see why they need to find a source of pee.
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LemurLemur
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: Ythan]
#25127301 - 04/10/18 12:01 AM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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Yall know what that synthetic urine is right? Fucking dog pee lmao jk its the peoples that sell it
This is stupid i just go to the park with a jar an 5$, "pssst kid..mere"
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Peyote Road
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: durian_2008]
#25127496 - 04/10/18 04:28 AM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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Quote:
durian_2008 said: Unless someone is a habitual user, I don't see why they need to find a source of pee.
because weed stays in your system for a while and what about all the people who ARE habitual users?
-------------------- The path of the herbalist is to open ourselves to nature in an innocent and pure way. SHe in turn will open her bounty and reward us with many valuable secrets. May the earth bless you. - Michael Tierra
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Konyap
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: Peyote Road]
#25127508 - 04/10/18 04:44 AM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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"but someone please think of the children!"
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durian_2008
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: Peyote Road]
#25127581 - 04/10/18 05:57 AM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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Quote:
durian_2008 said: Unless someone is a habitual user, I don't see why they need to find a source of pee.
Quote:
Peyote Road said: because weed stays in your system for a while and what about all the people who ARE habitual users?
If you were going to flub one of these tests, I suppose that the benefit of synthetic urine, is you know that it didn't come from someone who used drugs. Otherwise, pee is hardly a rarity.
We joke about them banning a plant, or a chemical which exists in our bodies, naturally. This is like banning excretia.
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trvptamine
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: durian_2008]
#25132101 - 04/11/18 11:03 PM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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How is it even okay for them to ban synthetic piss? Its not an addictive or harmful substance like some of the drugs that people use it to cover up. It seems like lawmakers are overstepping their power here. I can understand why they could make it illegal to use for drug court or probation, but banning its sale altogether seems wrong.
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LemurLemur
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: trvptamine] 1
#25132112 - 04/11/18 11:15 PM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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Not that it would do anything, use your dogs pee. Probation is on some gay shit tho they gotta mirror so they can watch like a faggot so unless u use a fake weiner u cant cheat either way.
-------------------- (when my data is fast play Lemur in chess at chess.com)[ [gradient:#D40B29,#18C418]Any1 expecting a trade from me i havent forgot about you pinky promise, i fr promise shits just shit rt now[/gradient]
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durian_2008
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: LemurLemur]
#25132895 - 04/12/18 10:32 AM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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I agree, that they're voyeurs.
Also, don't give them ideas. There will there be a ban on fake wieners, now.
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LemurLemur
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: durian_2008] 1
#25133154 - 04/12/18 12:39 PM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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Nothing that doesnt show up on the first 3 links in a google search
-------------------- (when my data is fast play Lemur in chess at chess.com)[ [gradient:#D40B29,#18C418]Any1 expecting a trade from me i havent forgot about you pinky promise, i fr promise shits just shit rt now[/gradient]
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durian_2008
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: LemurLemur]
#25133233 - 04/12/18 01:10 PM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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Quote:
LemurLemur said: dog pee
How?
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LemurLemur
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: durian_2008]
#25133655 - 04/12/18 04:58 PM (5 years, 11 months ago) |
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A cup an patience
-------------------- (when my data is fast play Lemur in chess at chess.com)[ [gradient:#D40B29,#18C418]Any1 expecting a trade from me i havent forgot about you pinky promise, i fr promise shits just shit rt now[/gradient]
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merch137
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Re: States move to ban fake urine, a new challenge for drug testing amid an abuse epidemic [Re: LemurLemur]
#25192536 - 05/08/18 09:34 PM (5 years, 10 months ago) |
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I've got two bottle of synthetic urine sitting on my desk and the world hasnt ended
-------------------- Those that know their mushrooms say...[...] Amanita. [quote]sublimistri said: id probably just trip it out then make them a friend and grow my own belladonna secretly to dose them on. [/quote] [quote]sublimistri said: this is the exact reason I wanna grow belladonna, because ima get that bitch back. [/quote]
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