Iowa Code Section 730.5 Private Sector Drug-Free Workplaces, requires that any employer located (or doing business) in Iowa that chooses to test its employees or prospective employees for drugs or alcohol may do so according to Iowa law. The law also requires that confirmatory testing be conducted by laboratories certified by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) or by confirmatory laboratories approved by the Iowa Department of Public Health. Both in-state and out-of-state labs may seek Iowa approval. With the exception of an annual reporting requirement, no additional approval processes or actions are required of SAMHSA labs.
The administrative rules that implement Iowa Code Section 730.5 (I.A.C., 641--Chapter 12, Approval of Confirmatory Laboratories for Private Sector Drug-Free Workplace Testing), describe the requirements that non SAMHSA laboratories must satisfy to be approved by the department as a confirmatory lab. The approval and renewal fees that the department collects from Iowa-approved labs are deposited in the general fund. Laboratories must renew their approval annually. Copies of the law, the administrative rules, the complete application package, and a list of approved labs are available at link below or upon request.
Iowa Code, Administrative Rules and Approved Laboratories
- Application-Private Drug Testing Laboratories
- Iowa Code Section 730.5
- Iowa Private Sector Employee Drug Testing Approved Labs (April 2022)
- SAMHSA Approved Laboratories
For more information, contact Lori Hancock-Muck at (515) 204-9766.