One in Five American Workers Tested Had a Positive Hair Drug Test in 2025, Signaling Persistent Long-Term Substance Use Patterns

About this update from Quest Diagnostics Incorporated

SECAUCUS, N.J., July 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Nearly one in five workers in the general U.S. workforce (19.1%) tested positive for drug use based on an analysis of hair specimens collected in 2025, an increase of nearly 46% compared to 13.1% in 2021, finds the 2026 Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index™. For more information, visit www.QuestDiagnostics.com/DTI .  Over the past five years, overall hair test positivity for marijuana increased 58.9% (9.5% in 2021 vs. 15.1% in 2025). Pre-employment hair test positivity for marijuana increased 49.5% over the past five years (10.1% in 2021 vs. 15.1% in 2025). Random hair test positivity for marijuana increased 14.8% in the same period (18.3% in 2021 vs. 21.0% in 2025). Marijuana also accounted for 52.5% of hair drug positives in 2025. By comparison, overall urine drug test positivity in the general U.S. workforce slightly declined to 4.3% in 2025 from 4.4% in the prior year.  The findings suggest that a sizeable minority of the American workforce uses drugs, principally marijuana, on a recurring or chronic basis. While traditional urine testing methods only capture drug use within a window of several hours or days, hair analysis provides an extended detection window that delivers a long-term history of substance use patterns over extended periods, offering insights into ongoing drug use behaviors. "These findings demonstrate the importance of a comprehensive approach to impairment mitigation in the workplace," said Claire Bryant, Senior Program Manager of Workplace Wellbeing at the National Safety Council. "Employers play a critical role in addressing the root causes of substance misuse through supportive policies, benefits and recovery." In addition to marijuana, hair test positivity for other substances also increased. In the general U.S. workforce, cocaine positivity was 4.0% in 2025 (up from 2.7% in 2021), a relative increase of 48.1%, while benzoylecgonine, the primary metabolite of cocaine, increased to 1.7% (up from 1.1% in 2021), an increase of 54.5%. Amphetamine (2.3% in 2025 vs. 1.8% in 2021), which can include prescription medications, were up 27.8% while positivity for the illicit class of methamphetamine was up 19.0% (2.5% in 2025 vs. 2.1% in 2021).

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