Maryland drug testing laws for employers: pre-employment testing rules (2026)

Maryland regulates how job-related drug tests are done through Health-General § 17-214. As of October 2026, an employer that tests an applicant must use a laboratory holding a Maryland permit or an approved out-of-state laboratory, may use instant screens only on job applicants and must confirm any positive in a laboratory, and after a confirmed positive must deliver the result, its written policy, any intended action and notice of the right to an independent retest within 30 days. Adult-use cannabis is legal for people 21 and older, but Maryland law does not stop employers from testing for it or acting on a positive, except for certified fire and rescue public safety employees.

Maryland drug testing rules at a glance

Does Maryland have a drug testing law for employers?

Yes, a procedural one. Health-General § 17-214 does not require anyone to test or limit when testing happens. It applies to "job-related alcohol and controlled dangerous substance testing of any person, including preemployment applicants, employees, and contractors" (subsection (h)), where job-related means testing "used by an employer for a legitimate business purpose." A job applicant is someone who has applied for a position and is not currently employed by that employer. Specimens may be blood, urine, saliva or hair.

The Maryland Department of Health certifies the laboratories. Under subsection (f), its regulations require CAP or CMS accreditation, forensic accreditation for laboratories that run confirmation tests, proficiency testing, and federal HHS cutoff levels or levels set by the Secretary.

How do you drug test a job applicant in Maryland?

1. Pick a permitted laboratory. The specimen must go to a laboratory that "holds a permit under this subtitle," or one outside Maryland that is certified or approved under subsection (f), and at the time of testing the employer must tell the person the laboratory's name and address if asked (§ 17-214(b)(1)).
2. Or use an instant screen, for applicants only. A preliminary screening procedure uses an FDA-compliant single-use device meeting generally accepted cutoffs, such as SAMHSA's. It may be used to test job applicants for controlled dangerous substances, but not anyone else, and not where a collective bargaining agreement prohibits it (§ 17-214(b)(2), (l)). A positive screen goes to a laboratory for testing.
3. Handle prescriptions before the screen. If the applicant voluntarily discloses and documents a legally prescribed medication, the employer may hire pending laboratory confirmation and medical review officer review (§ 17-214(b)(2)(iii)). The laboratory and any physician may not reveal lawful nonprescription drug use, other than alcohol, or prescribed drug use the person can establish, except as federal motor carrier rules require, or where the screener told the applicant beforehand that they could disclose a prescription (§ 17-214(i)).
4. MRO review and trained screeners. An employer that screens applicants on site must have a medical review officer review a positive after laboratory confirmation (§ 17-214(j)), keep a written chain of custody (§ 17-214(d)), and run a documented training program for the people who collect and test (§ 17-214(k)).
5. Hair only before hire. Hair may be used only for pre-employment purposes, no longer than one and one-half inches, and only to test for controlled dangerous substances (§ 17-214(b)(3)).
6. Deliver the 30-day package. After a confirmed positive, the employer provides a copy of the laboratory result, its written policy on drug and alcohol use, written notice of any intent to take action, and a statement of the right to independent testing, delivered in person or by certified mail within 30 days of the test (§ 17-214(c)).
7. Allow the retest. The person may have the same specimen independently tested by a permitted or approved laboratory, at their own cost (§ 17-214(e)).

Note what the statute requires indirectly: because subsection (c) makes you hand over "a copy of the employer's written policy," an employer that tests needs one. The drug testing policy template is a starting point.

Can Maryland employers test applicants for cannabis?

Yes. Cannabis is legal for adults 21 and older in Maryland, under the Alcoholic Beverages and Cannabis Article, but the legalization did not add employment protections. The Maryland Cannabis Administration's patient FAQ answers the question directly: "Maryland law does not prevent an employer from testing for use of cannabis (for any reason) or taking action against an employee who tests positive for use of cannabis (for any reason)." The answer appears in the FAQ for medical patients, who are the group most likely to expect protection.

The 2026 exception for fire and rescue employees

SB 439, Chapter 183 of 2026, took effect October 1, 2026. The Maryland Cannabis Administration's FAQ on the law says an employer may not discipline, discharge or otherwise discriminate against a fire and rescue public safety employee, meaning a firefighter, emergency medical technician, cardiac rescue technician or paramedic employed by a municipality, county, the state, the airport authority or a fire control district, because the employee holds a valid written certification or tests positive for cannabis while holding one. Employers may still bar on-duty use and working while impaired. The FAQ cites State Government Article § 20-606(g). It is a public-sector rule; private employers are not covered.

Which federal rules still apply in Maryland?

• DOT-regulated roles follow 49 CFR Part 40; a commercial driver needs a verified negative pre-employment result before the first safety-sensitive function (49 CFR 382.301). Section 17-214(i)(2) lets laboratories share medication information where federal motor carrier rules require it.
• Rescheduling. The April 28, 2026 order moved FDA-approved and state-medical-license marijuana to Schedule III, but DOT's Part 40 guidance (May 15, 2026) says a Maryland medical cannabis certification still cannot make a DOT positive negative.
• Federal contractors need the policy statement and awareness program in the FAR Drug-Free Workplace clause.
• The ADA: see pre-employment medical exams under the ADA.

What should staffing agencies placing workers in Maryland do?

1. Whoever requires the test follows § 17-214. The section binds "an employer who requires any person to be tested," including contractors. If the agency orders the test, the agency sends the 30-day package after a confirmed positive; agree in the client contract who does it when the client orders.
2. Only screen applicants on site. Section 17-214(b)(2)(iv) bars using a preliminary screen on anyone not applying for a job with the employer, and a job applicant is someone not currently employed by it. Workers already on your payroll who move to a new assignment should go straight to a laboratory test.
3. Train your screeners and keep the records. Subsection (k) requires a documented training program for anyone who runs preliminary screens at your branch.
4. Mind the health care staffing license. Maryland ended general employment agency licensing but kept licenses for health care staffing; see Maryland staffing agency licensing.

Maryland's other hiring rules are in the Maryland hiring checklist, Maryland background check laws, Maryland ban-the-box rules, Maryland's salary history ban, Maryland pay transparency, E-Verify in Maryland, Maryland's all-party recording consent law and new Maryland hiring laws for 2027.

Checklist: before you drug test an applicant in Maryland

1. Write a substance policy you can hand over after a positive.
2. Use a Maryland-permitted or approved laboratory, and give its name and address on request.
3. If you use instant screens, use them on applicants only, train the screeners and keep chain of custody.
4. Send positives to the laboratory, then to an MRO, before deciding.
5. Deliver the result, policy, notice and retest statement in person or by certified mail within 30 days.
6. Compare other states in drug testing laws in hiring.