Most states bar benefits where intoxication was the proximate cause of injury. Several provide a rebuttable presumption of causation where testing shows intoxication above a threshold.
Testing protocol compliance is required for the presumption.
Alternative Names:
Intoxication Bar|Drug and Alcohol Defense
Why it Matters?
Post-accident testing protocol compliance determines whether the presumption applies, and defects in chain of custody, timing, or laboratory certification defeat it, returning the burden to the employer to prove causation directly. That proof is difficult where the mechanism of injury does not obviously implicate impairment. Establishing a compliant testing program before an accident occurs is what makes the defense available afterward.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
What activates the causation presumption?
What happens if the protocol failed?
