CONTACT US: Contact info
|
Citation |
Tiscione NB, Miller R, Shan X, Tate Yeatman D. J. Anal. Toxicol. 2017; 41(6): 530-535. |
|
Affiliation |
Toxicology Unit, Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, 3228 Gun Club Road, West Palm Beach, FL 33406, USA. |
|
Copyright |
(Copyright © 2017, Preston Publications) |
|
DOI |
|
PMID |
28541406 |
|
Abstract |
A study was previously conducted and published describing the magnitude of the under-reporting of drugs in driving under the influence (DUI) cases by using a blood drug screen (BDS) case management protocol and to determine whether not reporting those drugs would have a meaningful impact on the DUI cases. A follow-up study presented herein was conducted to generate a larger dataset for evaluation and to compare the results to the original study. For this follow-up study of 576 cases, the laboratory BDS protocol was modified so that a BDS was performed for all felony cases and all misdemeanor cases with a BAC < 0.15 g/dL, regardless of the officer's request. A cost analysis estimate was also conducted using purchasing and statistical data for calendar year 2014. It was estimated that on average a BDS had a materials cost 30 times greater than a BAC and required over six times as much analyst time. To perform a BDS on every case as has been recommended, the estimated analysis materials cost and analyst time were 218 and 193% of the old protocol, respectively. The results of this follow-up study futher support the insufficiency of presenting drug positivity as a justification for completing drug analysis on every DUI case. For the vast majority of cases with a BAC > 0.08 g/dL, the drugs detected are not significant for supporting a DUI and do not warrant the substantial increase in analysis cost and time required. Language: en |