FRA Part 219 Drug & Alcohol Testing for MOW Employees

On June 10, 2016 the FRA published a final rule for Drug & Alcohol testing for MOW workers, see here for the full text of the final rule: https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2016-06-10/pdf/2016-13058.pdf

This is now federal law!

FRA Post Accident Testing Criteria - Effective June 12, 2017
FRA Post Accident Testing Flow Chart
 
The FRA has also recently developed a model railroad contractor compliance plan, which is available on the FRA website here: https://www.fra.dot.gov/Page/P0345

Attached is the link to the FRA Part 219 Drug and Alcohol presentation from the Industry Seminar trainings held in February, March and April of 2017.
https://www.fra.dot.gov/eLib/details/L02699#p1_z10_gD_lPO_s10
 
This presentation is located on the FRA website: https://www.fra.dot.gov/Page/P0345.  
 
The rule expands the scope of FRA’s alcohol and drug regulations to cover employees, including contractors, that perform railroad maintenance-of-way activities as required by section 412 of the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008. The rule also proposes certain substantive amendments that either respond to NTSB recommendations or update and clarify the alcohol and drug regulations based on a retrospective analysis. The FRA will hold railroads, contractors, and subcontractors equally responsible for ensuring that their employees who perform MOW activities are in compliance with the requirements of Part 219. The final rule went into effect on June 12, 2017. 

In addition, the rule requires that railroads submit revised and expanded drug & alcohol plans to the FRA 30 days before June 12th (i.e. May 13, 2017). Those plans will need to include confirmation that the railroads have ensured that their contractors are going to have their own plans, hence we expect that railroads will begin reaching out to contractors any day now (we know some of you have already heard from certain railroads, e.g. CSX with their BROWZ system).
 
We initially sent out an email to NRC members on July 22, 2016 explaining the relationship we set up with Alere eScreen through which NRC members receive discounted drug & alcohol testing rates. (See more info here.) That is still a viable option for contractors to use who are comfortable setting up their own plans and administering their programs, but after meeting with the FRA and gaining a better understanding of all of the requirements of the 219 rule, we now believe that many NRC member contractors would be better served by a full service Third Party Administrator (TPA). So, we now have now set up relationships with two separate TPAs recommended to us by various NRC member companies and railroads. These TPAs will provide additional services that many contractors will likely want to take advantage of beyond just managing a drug testing consortium and collecting samples. 

The NRC-endorsed TPAs are DISA and Integrity Testing & Safety Administrators, Inc. While both companies offer TPA services for contractors (including compliance plans, policies, pool management, training, collection services, clinic networks across the country, lab services, random testing consortium services, etc), each has its own unique benefits that might be more attractive to certain NRC member companies. Both companies have also assured us that they are truly full-service TPAs and can provide extensive hand holding services to help guide contractors through the compliance process and requirements under this rule.

 
DISA offers a flat annual rate per policy and set fees for NRC members for each service. DISA has a long history of managing contractor drug & alcohol testing and is a big player in the drug testing industry, including within the USDOT regulated community, but is relatively new to the railroad industry.
 
DISA flyer with overview and pricing for NRC members.
 
To sign up or for any additional questions, contact James Stanley at (281) 673-2240 X2586 or email transportationsales@disa.com and lmention you are an NRC member. 


Integrity Testing & Safety Administrators, Inc. 
 
Integrity Testing & Safety Administrators, Inc. (Integrity) has over 25 years of experience in developing and implementing programs to meet the requirements of the Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations to include all DOT agency rules such as the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Part 219 rule. Integrity is experienced in contractor programs and understands the relationship between contractor companies, their clients, third-party auditors and direct interaction with DOT agencies program managers.
 
Integrity provides a complete DOT drug and alcohol compliance package to all new Designated Employer Representatives (DERs) to assist in implementing the drug and alcohol testing program with the necessary forms required by the DOT and FRA. Integrity will provide and/or conduct the necessary training required for supervisors for reasonable suspicion determinations and FRA post-accident training steps in the event an FRA accident occurs. Integrity also provides and/or conducts training for safety-sensitive employees regarding the requirements of the FRA policy. Fees for training will be provided upon request of a proposal for services.
 
Here is the Integrity Flyer for with overview and pricing for NRC members

To sign up or for any questions, contact the Director of Regulatory Compliance, Mary Brown-Ybos by email: mbrown-ybos@integritytesting.net, cell phone: 248-703-0801, or office phone: 833-339-ITSA (4872).
 

OnwardEAP

NRC member company OnwardEAP offers some additional services that might be of interest to some companies, especially their Employee Assistance Program (EAP) services which can help fill the gaps above and beyond what the two TPAs offer. OnwardEAP has a long history of working in both the freight and passenger rail industry and its employees have experience dealing with drug testing, substance abuse professionals (SAP), and follow up services. As you may know, EAP services focus on assisting troubled employees with life problems to help improve productivity. Follow up services can help employees get SAP evaluations and get treatment and/or back to work after a drug or alcohol violation. Onward can assist in the development of company policies and procedures for early intervention, prevention, and treatment of employees with personal problems thereby reducing the costs and issues related to troubled employees.
 
OnwardEAP Services Include:
  • Drug Free Workplace program policy development and implementation (see https://www.samhsa.gov/workplace)
  • Network of Substance Abuse Professionals tailored to your geographical needs
  • Compliance Management to ensure SAPs have required qualifications
  • Employee Assistance Program services
  • Follow up for those employees returning under SAP recommended aftercare
 
OnwardEAP has established set fees for NRC member companies for each of the following services:
 
Fees:
  • Drug Free work place:
    • $3.00 per employee per month
    • Start-up fee including all materials $1500.00
    • Aftercare Follow-up per SAP recommendation - $500 per case
    • Trainings:
      • Substance Abuse Education - $300.00
      • EAP orientation - $300.00
 
For more information, contact Joe Torres by phone at 805-625-2484 or email at tobytorres60@gmail.com or Steve Garnham at sg9297@gmail.com.

If you have any questions, please email mmcgonagle@nrcma.org.