More U.S. workers test positive for meth, cocaine and marijuana, study says

(Washington Post, May 14) More U.S. workers tested positive for cocaine and methamphetamine in 2017, according to numbers from Quest Diagnostics. The company analyzed more than 10 million drug tests.

The increase was especially evident in certain parts of the nation.

In a few Southern states – Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi and Tennessee – positive tests for meth shot up 160 percent between 2013 and 2017. In the Midwestern region, positive tests for meth shot up 167 percent during that same time period. In Nebraska there was 91 percent increase in positive tests for cocaine from 2016 to 2017.

However the number of workers testing positive for prescription opioids and heroin have decreased from 2016 to 2017. Read more.