When Is a DOT Urine Collection Directly Observed?

A DOT urine collection is directly observed in the situations listed in 49 CFR 40.67, including every return-to-duty and follow-up test.

Under 40.67(a), the employer directs an immediate observed collection with no advance notice when an invalid result had no adequate medical explanation, when a positive, adulterated or substituted result was cancelled because the split specimen could not be tested, or when the Medical Review Officer (MRO) reports a negative-dilute result that calls for an observed recollection.

Under 40.67(c), the collector also conducts an observed collection when directed by the Designated Employer Representative (DER), when the employee's conduct or items brought to the site clearly indicate an attempt to tamper, when the specimen temperature is out of range or when the specimen appears to have been tampered with. Under 49 CFR 40.65(c), the collector inspects each specimen for unusual color, foreign objects or material or other signs of tampering.

The rule states that the observer must be of the same sex as the employee and does not need to be a qualified collector. Declining a required observed collection is a refusal to test under 40.67(m).

Under 40.67(g)(3), while oral fluid testing is not yet available and no same-sex observer is present at the collection site, the collector contacts the Designated Employer Representative (DER), who either arranges for one or sends the employee to another collection site acceptable to the employer. The MyDrugTesting.com directory can be searched by location and service to compare collection sites. A related procedure is described in What Is a Monitored Urine Collection?.