SmithKline Beecham, one of the nation's largest testing firms, has done 24 million drug tests in the last 10 years. Though urinalysis remains the most common method of testing, Psychemedics' sales have boomed in the last few years. The company says it has more than 1,000 corporate clients nationwide, including big names such as General Motors Corp. and Chicago-based WMX Technologies, parent of Waste Management. More than 30 police departments, including New York City and Chicago, use Psychemedics to test police recruits, said Raymond Kubacki Jr., president and chief executive officer of Psychemedics. The hair test can detect drugs that were taken 90 days before a sample was gathered.
Most drugs can escape detection through urinalysis within a few days.
The test requires a swath of hair that is roughly the width of a pencil and about 1.5 inches long. If someone is bald, body hair samples are taken.