The Labor Department's OSHA issued a fact sheet Thursday to help employers recognize opioid overdoses at work and respond immediately. It recommends keeping naloxone or nalmefene accessible, teaching workers to identify symptoms and training them to administer it.
The fact sheet is part of the Trump administration's Great American Recovery Initiative, focused on addiction treatment and recovery. A July Quest Diagnostics report using its U.S. workforce data said nearly one in five workers tested positive for drug use in 2025; opiate use was highest among healthcare workers tested. The report included hair and urine tests.
In an earlier case, a software company paid $80,000 to settle an EEOC disability-discrimination lawsuit. The agency alleged the company fired a worker who took leave for inpatient substance-abuse treatment. The EEOC said the worker had a history of opiate addiction, was receiving doctor-supervised medication-assisted treatment and was fired because he was regarded as disabled, in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
