Fitness for Duty Drug Testing Requirements

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is amending its regulations regarding fitness for duty (FFD) programs for certain NRC licensees and other entities to align the NRC's drug testing requirements more closely with the updates made to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' "Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs" in 2008 and as revised in 2017. This final rule also incorporates lessons learned from implementing the NRC's current FFD regulations. These changes enhance the ability of NRC licensees and other entities to identify individuals using illegal drugs, misusing legal drugs, or attempting to subvert the drug testing process. This final rule provides additional protections to individuals subject to drug testing and improves the clarity, organization, and flexibility of the NRC's FFD regulations. This final rule provides a new flexibility for the collection and drug testing of an oral fluid specimen as an alternative to the collection and testing of a urine specimen under direct observation conditions. The NRC also is issuing final implementation guidance for this final rule.