The Drug Intoxication Defense to Workers’ Compensation Compensability in Mississippi

Do You Know the Rule?

Mississippi employers can defend themselves against an employee's workers' compensation claim where the employee was injured in part because of the illegal use of drugs. But they’ll have to prove that the drug was a contributing factor to the accident.

What is the intoxication defense presumption?

If a claimant has a positive test showing that, at the time of the injury, he had a drug in his system that was illegally used, there is a presumption that the drug caused the injury.

What are examples of situations when the defense may apply?

The defense applies when the claimant has used an illegal drug. But it also applies when the claimant has used legal drugs that a doctor has prescribed but that the employee is using in a way that his doctor has not intended.

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Are drug tests admissible?

The results of drug tests are admissible as evidence to demonstrate that the use of drugs illegally was a contributing cause of the injury.

Can the employer make the claimant take a drug test?

An employer can ask the injured employee to take drug testing. If the claimant refuses to do so immediately after the injury, it’s generally presumed that the drug was a contributing factor to the injury.

When is marijuana considered illegally used?

Marijuana is always considered illegally used because it is illegal at the federal level. This is the case even though medical marijuana is legal in Mississippi. Thus, the use is illegal even if the employee was using the substance pursuant to a doctor’s prescription.

How can a claimant overcome the presumption?

To overcome that presumption that drugs contributed to the accident, the employee must prove that the use of the drugs was not a contributing cause. 

What if the amount of marijuana or other drug detected is very small?

The statute is triggered by the presence, at the time of injury of any drug that the claimant has used. It is not triggered by any specific level of marijuana, for example. 

Note on payment for marijuana use

Mississippi employers and their workers’ compensation carriers are not obligated to fund or reimburse an injured worker for the costs of purchasing medical marijuana.

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