What is a non-contact positive?

What is a non-contact positive? You may have seen this result on a recent drug test and had questions. It sounds a bit cryptic, but it’s actually very simple.

When a drug test is positive, meaning a drug of abuse was detected, the result goes to our Medical Review Officer (MRO). The MRO is a doctor with special training. Part of the MRO’s job is to validate any positive drug tests.

Generally this means contacting the donor to ask for explanation. If the donor can provide a valid prescription (which the MRO verifies with the pharmacy) or other reason a drug test result may be positive, then the MRO may report a negative result.

If the MRO is not able to contact the donor within a specific amount of time, then the result is reported as a Non-Contact Positive. The only reason for a WSS Non-Contact Positive is that the donor does not answer the phone or call back. We will work with you, the employer, to ensure that every attempt to contact the donor is made, so there's no issues such as illegible forms or invalid phone numbers creating Non-Contact Positive results.

What we see most often is that the donor knows she failed the test and avoids the call.

Other drug testing companies may report a non-contact positive for issues with the form. Some possible reasons the MRO may not be able to contact the donor include poor legibility on the Custody and Control Form. That is, if a paper CCF was used for collection and the MRO cannot accurately read the donor’s phone number, then the donor cannot be contacted. 

In any case, a result must be reported, and if no donor contact is made, then it’s reported as a Non-Contact Positive.

We have six MROs on staff, and 16 MRO assistants. We'll help walk you through the process, no matter what your results. If you have more questions on your drug testing results, or how to more effectively screen your employees, drop us an email.