What Services Can a C/TPA Perform for a DOT-Regulated Employer?

Under 49 CFR 40.343, a service agent may perform the tasks an employer needs to comply with DOT drug and alcohol testing regulations, subject to the requirements and limits of Part 40. Section 40.347 lists functions specific to C/TPAs.

A C/TPA may operate random testing programs for employers. It may also assist with other types of testing, such as pre-employment, post-accident, reasonable suspicion, return-to-duty and follow-up tests, for example by contracting with laboratories or collection sites or by conducting collections. A C/TPA may combine employees of more than one employer in a random pool where all the DOT agency rules involved allow it. Under 40.347(b), employees not covered by DOT agency regulations may not be in the same random pool as DOT-covered employees.

Section 40.347(c) states that a C/TPA may help employers carry out follow-up testing under the plan set by the Substance Abuse Professional (SAP), but neither the C/TPA nor the employer may randomly select employees from a "follow-up pool."

Under 49 CFR 40.345, a C/TPA may pass testing information to employers as an intermediary only when the employer chooses that arrangement and only in the situations listed in Appendix H to Part 40. Under 49 CFR 40.353, a C/TPA may provide MRO services directly or through contract, but the MRO must perform duties independently and confidentially.

The MyDrugTesting.com directory can be filtered by category to show TPAs, and results can be searched by city, state or ZIP code.