Bad News: Your MMJ Card Won’t Stop You From Failing a THC Drug Test

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has announced significant revisions to federal workplace drug testing guidelines. The agency's latest update makes it explicit that using medical marijuana, even under a doctor's recommendation in a state where it is legal, is not an acceptable reason for a positive THC test result.

In an official statement set to be published in the Federal Register, SAMHSA revealed that it had altered its guidance on saliva and urine testing, incorporating this critical clarification related to cannabis use. These changes have been introduced despite opposition to the proposal that was expressed in comments following its initial announcement last year.

Notably, SAMHSA has broadened the scope of its amended language. It now specifies that passive exposure to or unintentional ingestion of any illegal drug—rather than just cannabis—cannot be cited as a valid excuse for a positive test result in the context of federal employment.

It is important to underline that participation in a state's medical cannabis program has never shielded federal employees from potential termination due to marijuana use. However, the updated language reaffirms the federal government's steadfast position against cannabis, underscoring its ongoing prohibitionist stance.

SAMHSA acknowledged the receipt of numerous comments urging a reconsideration of the marijuana testing policy, with many advocating for federal cannabis legalization. Nevertheless, SAMHSA cited the existing law as the basis for its revised guidance.

The most significant amendment to SAMHSA's initial cannabis-related language, as proposed last year, clarifies that passive exposure to any drug, not just marijuana smoke, and the ingestion of food products containing a drug, not limited to those containing marijuana, cannot serve as acceptable medical explanations for a positive drug test.

The statement issued by SAMHSA asserts, “A physician's authorization or medical recommendation for a Schedule 1 controlled substance is not a legitimate medical explanation for a positive drug test result.”

This revision comes at a time when the conflict between state laws allowing some form of legal cannabis access and workplace drug testing policies remains a topic of heightened awareness and debate.