In 2019, workforce positive drug tests reached a 16-year high, a nationwide survey finds.

Positivity rates in the combined U.S. workforce last year. In urine drug tests, they climbed to the highestlevel since 2003 (4.5%) and were more than 28% higher than the 30-year low of 3.5% recorded between 2010 and 2012, reports Quest Diagnostics, the diagnostic testing company.

This happened before the Coronavirus pandemic of 2020, which has seen reports of increased drug and alcohol abuse by a population that has suffered from the stress of a potentially fatal illness, isolating lockdowns and loss of jobs and businesses.

"There is no question that before Covid-19, rates of workplace drug positivity were trending in the wrong direction,” said Dr. Barry Sample, senior director of science and technology for Quest.

Drug deaths in the U.S. rose 5% in 2019, driven largely by methamphetamine, cocaine and fentanyl,

following a decline in 2018. During the first few months of 2020, drug deaths increased about 13% compared with last year.

The drug testing laboratory Millennium Health also found when comparing the period earlier this year from Jan. 1 to when the national emergency was declared on March 13, to the period from March 13 to the end of May, there was an increase of 32% for nonprescribed fentanyl, 20% for methamphetamine, 12.5% for heroin and 10% for cocaine, along with an 18% increase in suspected drug overdoses.

“Our data is a reminder that it is important to remain vigilant about all drug misuse in the workforce,” Quest’s Dr. Sample recommends, arguing that “organizations will need to consider the impact of Covid-19 not only on workplace safety but also as a health concern for their employees for some time to come."