ORAL DRUG TEST APPEARS TO BE BREAK THROUGH

Drug testing soon will become as easy as poping a cookie into one's mouth,
thanks to an Oregon research company.

Epitope Inc. of Beaverton has Food and Drug Administration approval of the
nation's first oral drug testing device for cocaine, methamphetamine and
marijuana.

STC Technologies of Bethelehem, Pa., delevoped the actual lab test, called
an enzyme immunoassay.

Epitope produces the OraSure collection device, a specially treated pad
placed between the cheek and gum. The pad absorbs a fluid that migrates
into the mouth from blood vessels.

The pad is sealed in a case and sent to a lab for analysis.

The oral test is less embarressing than the tradtional urine test, and will
be much harder to defeat by trickery or drug-blocking chemicals ingested by
a subject.

Epitope will begin marketing the test kit to three primary markets:
government-mandated drug testing, such as testing of federal transportation
workers; forensic testing, including police work; and workplace testing.