The actual tests themselves are also part of the problem. As stated in a previous post the tests do not actually detect all forms of prescription opiates that can so easily be abused, which is a common misconception of many employers and companies. They do believe the tests that they are requiring of their future employees do include any and all substances. But again – this comes into a very strong privacy issue. It is completely legal and legitimate for a company to have a person tested for illicit substances, but the question is not whether they should be testing for illicit substances, but where we need to draw the line when the tests reveal things that are supposed to be personal between you and your doctor.

But it is also true that the presence of a prescription medication does not indicate that you are necessarily on a prescription. Simply because you have Oxycodone in your system does not mean that you are taking the substance legally. This is one of the bigger concerns of many companies that are currently changing their drug testing policies to begin testing for prescription medications. The real issue for potential employees comes down to; even if you have a prescription and can provide evidence of said prescription then they may still choose not to hire you – or even to fire you because of this, thus the privacy issue being brought to the courts attention with a recent company who fired a large number of employees after changing their drug testing policy and randomly testing most of their employees.