Does the army do hair follicle drug testing prior to enlistment?

Answer 1

As of March 2008, all branches of the militaryare now administering hair follicle tests do to the increase of soldiers using illegal substances on base and in the line of duty, causing fellow soldiers lives to be jeopardized. As a recruiter of 2 years, I hate to say how many bright individuals we've seen turned away due to drug and mental health problems. When they test, they test for anything and everything. On top of the initial MEPS testing, between time of enlistment and the time you actually go into boot camp, you can bet that they will do random drug screens. Most prescription drugs are even being filtered out depending on the severity of how people are abusing it. Also, if you are taking any prescription drugs for depression or any mental illnesses, then forget about the military. They don't want people who come into the military that have to rely on medications to think straight. If you are planning on joining, make sure you are clean long enough to pass the tests, and then steer clear of anything that may cause you to fail urinalysis and blood tests that will most likely happen randomly between enlistment and the date you go to boot camp. I wish you the best of luck, my friend.
UPDATE:
Blood tests are now being administered only during MEPS. Only urinalysis will occur at random times for routine random UA's. And, as a warning, the military DOES NOT have to give 24 hour notice as businesses do. They will call you in at random times; and if your record isn't clean of anything over a period of three to four years (depending on your age, it can be up to 10 years), then you can put your money on being tested more often and more randomly, depending on your offense due to being a "risk" candidate. Again, I wish you the best of luck my friend.