Notice2024-02640
Notice of Meeting
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
February 9, 2024
Issuing agencies
Health and Human Services DepartmentSubstance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 28 (Friday, February 9, 2024)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 28 (Friday, February 9, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9166-9167]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-02640]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Notice of Meeting
Pursuant to Public Law 92-463, notice is hereby given that the
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA)
Center for Substance Abuse Prevention's (CSAP) Drug Testing Advisory
Board (DTAB) will convene via web conference on March 5, 2024, from 10
a.m. EST to 12:45 p.m. EST.
The board will meet in open-session March 5, 2024, from 10 a.m. EST
to 12:45 p.m. EST to hear presentations regarding proposed changes to
the analyte table including fentanyl prevalence, fentanyl immunoassay
updates, cost and benefits analysis and a summary of public comments
received regarding the proposed changes to the HHS Drug Testing Panels.
Section 8105 of the Fighting Opioid Abuse in Transportation Act,
included in the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act, required the
Secretary to determine whether it is justified, based on the
reliability and cost-effectiveness of testing, to revise the Mandatory
Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs to include
fentanyl. Section 8105 additionally required the Secretary to consider
whether to include any other drugs or other substances listed in
Schedule I and II of Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Norfentanyl is a
metabolite of fentanyl. Because it is also an immediate precursor used
in the illicit manufacture of fentanyl, it is a Schedule II substance
under the CSA.
Fentanyl is involved in a large proportion of overdose deaths in
the United States and is therefore an important public safety concern.
Furthermore, fentanyl is increasingly used as a stand-alone substance,
not in conjunction with heroin and other substances. According to the
National Forensic Laboratory Information System (NFLIS) 2022 report,
fentanyl was the 3rd most frequently identified drug and accounted for
13.81% of all drugs reported by forensic laboratories.\1\ Norfentanyl
is an important component of identifying people who use fentanyl when
urine is the specimen matrix. Fentanyl has been detected in oral fluid
in patients receiving pain management
[[Page 9167]]
services, overdose cases, and driving under the influence of drugs
(DUID) cases. Information provided by HHS-certified laboratories in
2023 indicated that a majority (84%) of the laboratories analyzed non-
regulated workplace specimens for fentanyl and/or norfentanyl, and that
all had the ability to analyze urine specimens for fentanyl with
sufficiently sensitive detection limits using commercially available
immunoassay kits and confirmatory test instrumentation commonly used in
HHS-certified laboratories.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ National Forensic Laboratory Information System (NFLIS).
(2022). NFLIS-Drug 2022 Annual Report. U.S. Department of Justice,
Drug Enforcement Agency, Diversion Control Division. 2022 NFLIS-Drug
Annual Report.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Proposed addition to HHS Drug Testing Panels as listed below:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Initial test
Urine analyte cutoff Confirmation cutoff
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fentanyl....................... 1 ng/mL.......... 1.0 ng/mL.
Norfentanyl.................... ................. 1.0 ng/mL.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Initial test
Oral fluid analyte cutoff Confirmation cutoff
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fentanyl....................... 1 ng/mL.......... 1.0 ng/mL.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Department plans to remove MDA and methylenedioxy-
methamphetamine (MDMA) from the drug testing panel, because the number
of positive specimens reported by HHS-certified laboratories does not
support testing all specimens for MDA and MDMA in Federal workplace
drug testing programs. Information provided to the Department through
the NLCP in 2021 and 2022 shows the positivity rate for MDMA ranges
from 0.001 to 0.003%, and a review of the results indicate that >25% of
the positive specimens are likely agency blind samples. MDA has a lower
positivity rate than MDMA and both have lower positivity rates than
phencyclidine (PCP). SAMHSA also considered removing PCP but decided
against this change. While PCP has an overall positivity rate nearly as
low as MDMA, there are regional differences in positivity, with some
areas of the country having much higher rates, so PCP remains a
regulated test analyte. Because MDA and MDMA are Schedule I drugs, a
Federal agency may test specimens for these analytes in accordance with
Section 3.2 of the UrMG and OFMG (i.e., on a case-by-case basis for
reasonable suspicion or post-accident testing, or routinely with a
waiver from the Secretary).
Meeting registration information can be completed at <a href="https://snacregister.samhsa.gov/">https://snacregister.samhsa.gov/</a>. Web conference and call information will be
sent after completing registration. Meeting information and a roster of
DTAB members may be obtained by accessing the SAMHSA Advisory
Committees website, <a href="https://www.samhsa.gov/about-us/advisory-councils/meetings">https://www.samhsa.gov/about-us/advisory-councils/meetings</a>, or by contacting the Designated Federal Officer, Lisa Davis.
Committee Name: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration, Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, Drug Testing
Advisory Board.
Dates/Time/Type: March 5, 2024, from 10:00 a.m. EST to 12:45 p.m.
EST: OPEN.
Place: Virtual.
To Submit Comments: Requests to make public comment during the
public comment period of the March DTAB meeting must be made in writing
at least 7 days prior to the meeting to the following email:
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f3b7b5a4a3b380929e9b8092dd9b9b80dd949c85"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3d797b6a6d7d4e5c50554e5c1355554e135a524b">[email protected]</span></a>.
Contact: Lisa S. Davis, M.S, Social Science Analyst, Center for
Substance Abuse Prevention, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, Maryland
20857, Telephone: (240) 276-1440, Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f5b99c8694dbb194839c86b58694989d8694db9d9d86db929a83"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="7f33160c1e513b1e09160c3f0c1e12170c1e5117170c51181009">[email protected]</span></a>.
Anastasia Flanagan,
Public Health Advisor, Division of Workplace Programs.
[FR Doc. 2024-02640 Filed 2-8-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4162-20-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on February 9, 2024.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.