Global Drug Abuse Testing Market Size

Drug of Abuse Testing Market Analysis

The drug abuse testing market is expected to register a CAGR of 7.5% over the forecast period (2022-2027).

COVID-19 had a significant impact on the growth of the market. According to the article titled "New trends of substance abuse during COVID-19 pandemic: An international perspective" published in July 2020, forced isolation and quarantine during COVID-19 can impact the behavior of drug abusers. Additionally, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2021, an individual with substance use disorder is expected to be severely ill or infected with the SARS-CoV2 virus. Also, as per the research data published in Population Health Management, 2021, a significant decrease in the testing for prescription and illicit drugs was observed, with a weekly test volume decrease of 70%. Hence, there was an increased need for healthcare and public health organizations to be involved in drug abuse testing during the pandemic era to minimize unfavorable health outcomes among the majority of the global population. Thus, COVID-19 had a significant impact on the growth of the market.

The drug abuse testing market is expected to observe good growth due to the increasing demand for drug abuse treatment, stringent laws mandating alcohol and drug testing, rising drug-related mortality, and increasing government initiatives.

The use of drugs was found to give rise to a lot of illegal activities that consume a lot of resources of a country. These aspects have driven the governments of developed and emerging nations to take legal action against addicts and abusers. Therefore, developed countries like the United States have stringent laws for drug abuse and have mandated alcohol and drug testing. To limit violence or accidents, drug and alcohol testing on the roads is becoming very common in developing and developed countries, which is helping the growth of the overall market. According to the data published by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published in 2020, almost one in third of adults in the European Union aged 15-64 or around 97 million people have used illicit drugs at some point in their lives, with the experience of drug use being more frequently reported by men than women. Thus, a growing trend witnessed in the drug abuse testing market is that leading players are enhancing their product portfolios by adding products and updating software with new substances for drug abuse testing to maintain their competency and market shares.

Identifying drug testing strategies is also necessary, as they may lead to the adoption of drug testing kits and devices and thus, boost the market growth. Other factors that are expected to positively affect the growth of this market include the increasing demand for drug addiction treatment, rising drug-related mortality, and growing government initiatives. This market is also currently growing due to technological advancements, increased sensitivity, minimal time required for testing, and facilitated detection of newly developed designer drugs. For instance, In April 2020, Cordant Health Solutions began a telemedicine-based oral fluid drug testing solution to assist in providing critical care to individuals recovering from substance use disorder.

Thus the above-mentioned factors are expected to drive the growth of the market during the forecast period. However, the perception of Drug Abuse testing as a violation of rights is expected to limit the growth of the market.