Processing Your Payment

Please do not leave this page until complete. This can take a few moments.

September 27, 2017

Psychemedics first to develop hair test for Xanax, Valium

Courtesy/Psychmedics Psychmedics's Acton offices.

Acton drug testing firm Psychemedics has launched a hair test for benzodiazepines, the company announced Tuesday.

According to the company, it is the first to have its test for benzodiazepines cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The drugs, including Xanax, Valium and Ativan are among the most abused prescription drugs in the country, according to the company.

“The abuse of prescription benzodiazepines has grown at an alarming rate in the United States, contributing to thousands of emergency room visits and overdose deaths each year,” the company said.

The non-invasive test requires a small sample of hair that is shipped to the company’s laboratory. The test can detect use of the drugs over the previous few months, the company said. 

The announcement comes just a month after the company began offering its first hair test for synthetic cannabinoids in the workplace.

In a statement, Chairman and CEO Raymond Kubacki called the abuse of prescription drugs in the country rampant.

“We are extremely concerned about this problem and are doing everything in our power to address it,” he said.

Sign up for Enews

WBJ Web Partners

Related Content

0 Comments

Order a PDF