Among the toxicological tests with a wide detection window that were positive for the regular use of psychoactive substances, 57.68% were tests performed by drivers with a National Driver’s License (CNH) of category D, required to drive buses and vans.
The data are from the survey As Drogas e os Motoristas Profissionals, released by the Brazilian Association of Toxicology (ABTox) to mark the National Traffic Week 2022, which started on Sunday (18) and runs until September 25.
The survey is based on the Toxicological Panel of the Federal Data Processing Service (Serpro) and provides information for the period between March 2016, when the exam became mandatory for obtaining and renewing a CNH in categories C (cart), D (van and bus) and E (truck), and August 2022.
In the analyzed period, 111,475 positive tests were identified for drivers qualified in category D; 18,314 from category C and 63,475 positive with CNH E.
According to the National Registry of Qualified Drivers, of the National Traffic Department (Denatran), in July 2022 the country had 1.5 million truck drivers, 7 million bus and van drivers and 12.2 million driver’s licenses. truck.
The coordinator of the SOS Estradas program, Rodolfo Rizzotto, responsible for the study, said that the positivity rate in the toxicological tests is 2%, the same rate found in the alcohol tests of the Prohibition blitz, carried out by the Federal Highway Police (PRF). .
“The situation is much more serious than the positives reveal, because the positive is someone who has completely lost track of the volume of drugs they have in their body and will pay to take the test that detects regular drug use in the last 90 days. . That is, you will pay to be positive. It’s like a drunk looking for Operação Lei Seca and asking to pay for the breath test and it’s going to be positive, he’s drunk”, explains Rizzotto.
According to him, cocaine appears in first place among the psychoactive substances consumed by drivers, in second comes opioids, in third is marijuana and fourth is amphetamines, the so-called rivet.
Rizzoto also highlights that a group three times larger than the positive tests appears with detection of these substances, but at levels below the cutoff that indicates regular use.
The third National Survey on Drug Use by the Brazilian Population, launched by the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz) in 2019, indicates that, at some point in their lives, 7.7% of Brazilians have consumed marijuana and its derivatives, 3.1% have cocaine use, 0.9% used crack and 2.8% inhaled solvents.
As for the consumption of over-the-counter medications, Fiocruz estimates that the use of benzodiazepines (anxiolytic hypnotic psychotropic drugs) was taken without a prescription at some point in their lives by 3.9% of Brazilians, that of opiates (such as codeine and morphine) by 2 .9% and the class of amphetamines (synthetic stimulant drugs) was 1.4%.
Qualification
According to Rizzoto, the survey also detected a 30% drop in demand for C, D and E licenses since the toxicological test became required.
“The exam goes into effect in March 2016. You have a drop in the renewal of licenses in categories C, D and E, immediately, of 30%. That is, it has always grown and, suddenly, you have a new obligation, which is the wide-window drug test, and the drop is 30%. Due to the expected normal growth, the projection is that 4 million people failed to obtain their driver’s license in these categories. It’s scary, it’s what we call hidden positivity,” he said.
The president of ABTox, Renato Borges Dias, highlights that more than 40,000 drivers who drive motorcycles and cars were barred by the toxicological test to obtain a license for a trailer, bus and truck.
“Our data show that 42,622 of drivers in categories A (motorcycle), AB and B (car) did not obtain a license to drive a truck or bus because of the toxicological test. If they weren’t caught, they would be qualified and putting lives at risk. We’re talking about prevention work that even Operation Prohibition can’t do,” said Renato Borges.
Toxicology test
The wide detection window drug test became mandatory for drivers in categories C, D and E in March 2016.
Since November 2021, the lack of this exam generates a very serious fine of R$ 1,467.35, and the suspension of the right to drive for 90 days. The test needs to be done when obtaining and renewing the license, in addition to periodic every 30 months.
The test is carried out by a laboratory authorized by Denatran, with the analysis of keratin, found in hair, hair or nails, and identifies the regular use of psychoactive substances in the last 90 days. The reports are considered positive when they indicate values above a certain tolerance. The cut-off levels can be consulted in Annex I of Resolution No. 923 of the National Traffic CouncilFoto: (Contran), of March 28, 2022.
Amphetamines, cannabinoids (marijuana), opiates, cocaine and mazindol, a medication used for weight loss, are detected in the wide-window toxicological examination.
The coordinator of the SOS Estradas program, Rodolfo Rizzotto, emphasizes that the test is a measure to protect society as a whole, but that drug use is a cry for help from drivers in the face of exhausting working hours.
“It is important for us to understand that playboys are not using drugs for leisure, they use drugs to support the journey, to withstand the stress at work. So, it’s a cry for help. But we’re inside the buses, so we’d better think of a quick rescue. We’re talking tens of millions of people driven daily by drug users,” she said.
Source: CNN Brasil
