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Dragging Out the “Drugged Drivers” – DUI Enforcement is Also Capturing Drug Users

We all know about the dangers of “drunk driving.”

But what about “drugged driving?”

When someone gets behind the wheel after using a narcotic, they may be even more impaired than an alcohol user – making them a toxic peril to other drivers. And in many cases, they’re being mixed… with terrifying results.

Drugged Driving isn’t a new phenomenon. But what’s changed is the role of aggressive DUI enforcement in helping to snare more of these offenders.

In a recent LinkedIn article by Jim Wigmore – a forensic toxicologist and author – it’s clear that drinking drivers are more than twice as likely to have drugs in their systems than non-drinking drivers. This includes cocaine, THC and other prescription medications used in combination with alcohol.

The research indicates that roughly 300,000 to 400,000 drug users are being removed from the road by employing effective DUI enforcement strategies like sobriety checkpoints.

You can read the complete article here.

 

CheckBAC Featured on Canadian Morning Show, Salut, Bonjour!

Breaking News: ‪#‎CheckBAC‬ was featured this morning on national Canadian morning news with Stephane Maurais. The show’s hosts discussed how the CheckBAC Business breathalyzer and application monitoring system could have prevented 2 pilots (who were recently arrested for suspicion of alcohol use) from trying to fly while intoxicated.

The program – Salut, Bonjour! – is a nationally syndicated network show like TODAY or Good Morning America in the U.S. It is the flagship morning program on Canada’s TVA Network, the number one television network in Québec. Salut, Bonjour! continues to pull the largest audience share in the market seven days a week, with almost 24% of the viewing audience. To learn more about Salut, Bonjour!, click here.

For more information on CheckBAC’s Air Crew Safety Compliance Solutions, click here.

Flying the Unfriendly Skies: Pilots Arrested for Suspicion of Being Under the Influence

Flying, without a doubt, is the safest way to travel.

It’s true. Just consider the statistics:

The odds of a plane crash are one in every 1.2 million flights. That’s a stark contrast to driving, which is significantly more dangerous across the board. According to The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there are more than 5 million accidents on our roads each year. The National Transportation Safety Board, on the other hand, reported only 20 accidents with planes over the same time period.

But let’s get down to the real nitty-gritty: The National Safety Council calculated that the odds of dying in a motor vehicle to be 1 in 98 over a person’s entire lifetime. For air travel, the odds were 1 in 7,178.

Not even close.

Yes, planes do occasionally crash (there have been roughly 1,000 between 1950 and 2010). From pilot error to mechanical failure to weather incidents, the unthinkable can still happen. However, given the number of daily flights and the magnitude of airline passengers moving around the world, there’s a better chance that you’ll lose your luggage or get food poisoning than take your last ride.

But there is one thing that can increase the odds of a life-threatening outcome: pilot intoxication.

Imagine, if you will: you’re booked on a transatlantic flight from Glasgow to Toronto. You’ve taken your seat, stowed your carry-on luggage and made sure your tray table is in its upright position. The plane is taxiing down the runway, and you think, “is the pilot sober?”

This might be the first time you’ve considered this question – but the reality of pilot insobriety is more common than you think. And it just happened… again.

According to a recent story from the CBC, both the captain and co-pilot (that’s right, both!) were arrested for suspicion of alcohol use before manning a flight from Scotland to Ontario. The cabin crew alerted airline management before the 250 passengers boarded the plane, and a potential crisis was averted.

There’s no room for mistakes at 37,000 feet – and pilots can’t afford to have their judgement impaired in any way. To have both pilots intoxicated means that no one was available as a backup, putting every passenger at double the risk. Per FAA regulations, pilots aren’t allowed to consume any alcohol eight hours before a flight or have a blood alcohol level (BAC) higher than .04 percent. While airlines have been increasingly proactive in testing the BAC of their personnel – from mechanics to pilots – it’s clear that these systems continue to be circumvented.

According to a study by the PMC of Lexis-Nexis newspapers articles, the number of alcohol violations by airline pilots in the U.S. have significantly increased since 2001, and continues to occur with a disturbing frequency. From 2010 to 2015, 64 pilots were cited for violating the FAA alcohol and drug guidelines – and in 2015 alone, over 1,500 airline personnel (including 38 pilots) tested positive for illegal narcotics.

It’s unbelievable.

In a FoxNews interview, Peter Bartos, a retired military pilot, made this observation:

“It is mind-boggling that on average, one U.S. pilot a month is caught trying to fly a passenger aircraft while over the legal limit for flying, which at 0.04 percent, is more restrictive than for driving a car in many states, especially given that they know they are subject to screening. It also means that others aren’t caught, since it is not a mandatory test for all pilots on every flight.”

Pilots are responsible for the greatest asset of all: life. This responsibility can weigh heavily on these skilled and highly-trained individuals, and alcohol may be a common remedy for pressure and stress-related disorders. But there’s no excuse for being “cocked” in the cockpit – especially when so much is on the line.

While the U.S continues to have one of the most stringent and regulated systems for airline pilot safety, alcohol continues to plague our pilots – putting lives at stake, and making our skies a little less safe. We must do better, and recent advances in breathalyzer technology and monitoring practices can help lead the way.

 

The Blue Collar Blues: Alcohol Abuse Highest Among Construction and Mining Industries

“If you build it, they will drink…”

That sure seems to be the case in the construction and mining industries – where employees are abusing alcohol at record levels.

But it’s not just in these specific building and heavy industries. In fact, businesses across the board are measuring alcohol abuse with greater clarity than ever before, and the numbers are staggering. The reality is that almost every business is seeing a greater degree of risk.

We all know that substance abuse is negatively impacting U.S. businesses across the board. From lost productivity and absenteeism to workplace accidents and injuries, companies are at a greater risk than ever before. According to a 2015 SAMHSA study by Donna M. Bush and Rachel N. Lipari, U.S. companies lose billions of dollars each year because of alcohol and drug abuse – and those numbers vary based on the specific industry.

In the same study, the authors concluded that “an annual average of 8.7 percent of full-time workers aged 18-64 used alcohol heavily in the past month,” with the most concentrated use in the mining, construction and food services industries. While not all of the jobs in these fields are hazardous, many require the skilled operation of tools and machinery – and in some cases, heavy equipment with a high-level of risk to life and limb.

The bottom line: these are not the places where mistakes can happen.

There are many reasons why these “blue collar” workers might turn to alcohol. High turnover rates, low pay, limited opportunities for growth, clinical depression… the list of contributing factors goes on. While companies can invest in smart, proactive policies to combat substance abuse disorders, they are still at risk on any given day from an alcohol-related accident or injury – resulting in a work stoppage, lawsuit or other business-crippling event.

Want to see what the stats are for your specific industry? Read the entire study here.

 

CheckBAC Brings the Buzz at 2016 NADCP Drug Court Expo

CheckBAC is checking in with some serious buzz!

We just wrapped a dynamite week at the 2016 NADCP Drug Court Expo in Anaheim, and the hype was exploding around our new CheckBAC mobile application and management portal.

Guests of the conference were able to “test drive” the CheckBAC platform in our booth, and see first-hand how our real-time remote monitoring system virtually automates DUI probation compliance monitoring – and closes the gap between testing and accountability.

The NADCP (National Association of Drug Court Professionals) is a dynamic global event, with over 4,500 drug and DUI court practitioners, treatment providers, researchers and policymakers from the U.S. and abroad. It’s the world’s largest conference focusing on substance abuse and crime, and CheckBAC is proud to be part of this critical forum – helping to shape the future of DUI probation compliance monitoring.

To learn more about CheckBAC – or to schedule a demo of our application and management portal – contact Rodney Stearns rodney@checkbacbusiness.com or Kitt Hancock kitt@checkbacbusiness.com

For details about the NADCP conference, visit http://www.allrise.org/learn/annual-training-conference

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