NASAP Panel Change: What Your Organization Needs to Know
Make sure your team is aware of the NASAP panel change and any implications it may have for your organization’s drug and alcohol programs.
August 15, 2024
What Is the Change?
The Industry Business Roundtable (IBR) officially announced a panel change on July 1, 2024, for The North American Substance Abuse Program (NASAP), which will go into effect on August 15, 2024.
NASAP is dropping synthetic THC (commonly known as K2 metabolites) from its required minimum panel. The change is in accordance with Section 4 of the NASAP Substance Abuse Policy which states, “The substance panel is subject to change as substance usage and availability patterns suggest the addition or deletion of substances.”
You can see the full details in the change here.
The change is effective immediately and is applicable to any drug testing program or refinery that is a member of or utilizes the NASAP test or program to gain access to their site.
We will go into more details later, but the change will not affect your current NASAP process. It will also not require additional training and should have a minimal impact on the day-to-day operation of your company’s drug testing programs.
Why Is the Change Happening?
As stated in the NASAP policy, the panel is subject to change based on substance usage and availability patterns. Six years ago, synthetic THC products were trending and sold as herbal incense and potpourri with names like Spice, Blaze, and K2.
Recent data clearly shows that synthetic THC is on the decline and currently is not a significant drug abuse problem for organizations as before. For instance, laboratory records (from sources like Quest, CRL, and LabCorp) show synthetic THC was 0.36% in January of 2019, 0.26% in December of 2019, 0.45% in March of 2020, 0.19% in May of 2022, and dipped to 0.12% in July of 2023. Based on these declining numbers, NASAP has decided to remove synthetic THC from its panel.
Implications for Your Organization
While it is important for your organization to understand this change and make your team aware of it, it will not have a large impact on your existing programs.
Your TPA, like ASAPcheck, will handle the necessary details to address the panel change and update your account to reflect the new NASAP panel change. However, ASAPcheck suggests you contact your outside auditor (NCMS, Veriforce, TPS, PTC, etc.) and inform them about this change.
Some other non-direct impacts you may see are:
More expedited drug testing results because testing for synthetic THC was the most time-consuming aspect of the previous NASAP panel.
Better reciprocity because the removal of synthetic THC from NASAP’s panel will better align with other refinery consortium programs.
Have a Question? Contact ASAPcheck
If your team has a question about the NASAP panel change and any implications it may have for your organization, the ASAPcheck team is here to help. Please reach out to us today!
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