Will Breathalyzer Tests Become Standard for Illegal Drugs?
August 10th, 2015
What about a breathalyzer tests for drug use? Technology has really leapt forward when it comes to testing people who may be under the influence of illegal drugs. Obviously, when you’re pulled over for a DUI, you’re going to get a breathalyzer test in order to see what your blood alcohol level is. Now, advances in technology are starting to come forward that will make it so that people can do the same exact thing in order to find traces of illegal drugs, including cocaine, heroin, meth, and pot with the breathalyzer tests for drug use.
What sort of difference will this make? A huge one, actually. Urine tests, although very accurate, have given people a little bit of trouble in the past, and some of them can be inaccurate. On top of that, if someone is under the influence of a drug other than alcohol and they’re pulled over, the police have to wait until the urine analysis has been completed – and that could be a few days.
The faster that these sorts of cases can be dealt with, the faster it will be for these people to get the help that they need for their addiction, and to keep them off the road in the future.
Scientists, at this point, are working toward the best way to make this happen, even though critics say that it’s a breach of privacy. On the other hand, it could end up saving hundreds of lives in the future – and that, honestly, should be the desire of everyone that is dealing with this topic, breathalyzer tests for drug use.
What do you think? Do you think that breathalyzer tests for drug use should become standard, or are they an invasion of privacy? Is this something that is going to be helpful, or is it something that is going to do more harm than good?