Important – Is There A Penalty For Cheating Drug Screens?

It is illegal and a crime to fake a drug test and there may be some severe consequences for doing so. When a test has been falsified for employment reasons, it is however largely up to the employer how to handle the matter.

A reasonable employer may consider the reasons for the falsification such as the use of prescription medications to treat an illness or disease. They may also request a retest to establish whether the faked results would, in fact, have turned into a positive or negative result.

In the event of a retest, the second set of results will be taken into account. If they are positive, it is grounds for immediate dismissal. If the retest is negative, they may take other disciplinary action against an employee such as suspension or a warning.

In other cases, an employer may simply dismiss an employee immediately for cheating a urine or blood drug screening. They are legally within their rights to do so as the employee has broken the law at their place of work.

image of results failureIn extreme cases, the employer may call the police and the employee will be arrested for falsifying a drug screen. In this event, the employer will need to provide evidence to the police that a crime has been committed in order for the employee to be charged with a falsification offense.

An employer can also lay a charge against an employee at a police station for cheating a blood test which will also result in arrest.

If the employee is found guilty of this criminal action, they can be sentenced to up to 6 months jail time as well as fines of up to $2,000. However, these penalties can vary from state to state. Repeat offenders can face more severe penalties and expect prison time as well as fines.

The arrest and charges will form part of the employee’s permanent criminal record which will make it more difficult to find employment in the future and may also affect their ability to rent a home or apply for credit.

In some cases, it is not even necessary to have been caught cheating a substance screening. Being in possession of a device or fake urine sample may be sufficient to be charged with the crime as it shows intent to break the law although the penalties may be less severe in this event.

To minimize the chance of this happening, you should always purchase high-quality fake urine products from trusted sources who will protect your privacy when buying merchandise of such a sensitive nature.