DOT Services

Employers who are required to test their employees for drug and alcohol use under the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) can have their employees tested at our office. Employees referred for testing are seen rapidly and lose a minimal amount of time from work. This is an important factor in choosing your test site. Employees report to us that they often have to wait up to one hour at other local test sites. In our office, the usual wait is under five minutes and the employee is back on the road in under fifteen minutes.

At the North Conway Chiropractic Center we provide collection services for a number of HHS approved laboratories including LabCorp, Lab One, and Quest. If your company uses another laboratory we can arrange to be your local collection site for that laboratory also. If you use an out of town collection site, we can save you a great deal of time and money by performing collections for you in North Conway.

Dr. Kenney is a Factory Certified Senior Trainer for Lifeloc Industries and uses the Lifeloc Phoenix evidential breath testing device (EBT) for breath alcohol testing. The Lifeloc EBT is a fuel cell device. It meets the NHTSA standards and for accuracy and reliability and is listed on the NHTSA conforming products list for EBTs.

Breath alcohol testing may be performed as a pre-employment test. However, DOT regulations as defined in 49 CFR Part 40, require that if one employee is tested, then all future employees must also undergo pre-employment breath alcohol testing. Many employers opt to have all their employees working in DOT regulated safety-sensitive positions undergo pre-employment testing. The rationale being that if the employee has an alcohol problem, it is better to identify it before the employee is hired.

The DOT requires that all employees must undergo pre-employment drug testing, and have a negative test result, before they may being work in in a DOT covered safety-sensitive position.

FMCSRs require all employees who will operate commercial motor vehicles to undergo a physical examination and meet the minimal safety requirements. FMCSRs do not require new applicants possessing a current medical certificate to undergo a new physical examination as a condition of employment. However, if a motor carrier accepts a currently valid certificate from the driver, the driver is subject to additional controlled substances testing requirements unless otherwise exempted. Most employers insist that the driver have a new physical as a condition of employment. Their primary concern is being assured that the driver can safely operate their vehicles without endangering the public.

The FMCSRs do not require an examination in the case of a driver returning from injury or illness unless that injury or illness has impaired the driver's ability to perform his or her normal duties. However, the motor carrier may require a driver returning from an injury or illness to undergo a physical examination. But, in either case, the motor carrier has the obligation to determine if an injury or illness renders the driver medically unqualified.

Most carriers will, again, opt err on the side of caution and require an new examination if the driver is a new hire, or if they have experienced a significant injury or illness.