The Naval Special Warfare (NSW) Command will begin randomly testing its personnel for performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs), following allegations that such drugs are in widespread use among the Navy’s special warfare community.
Rear Adm. Keith Davids, the commander of NSW, announced the command will introduce incremental, random force-wide urinalysis testing starting in November.
“My intent is to ensure every NSW teammate operates at their innate best while preserving the distinguished standards of excellence that define NSW,” Rear Adm. Davids said in a Friday press statement.
NSW is most known for its Navy SEAL teams but the command is also responsible for training and deploying Special Warfare Combatant Crewmen and Explosive Ordnance Disposal technicians.
Illicit substances have been a persistent concern throughout the military, even in the special operations community. Some leaders have balked at testing regimens for performance-enhancing drugs because they are often highly specialized and costly and require contracting through a limited number of labs that do such work. The military services have done occasional tests when they perceive a problem with an individual service member, but they must get special permission from the Pentagon to do routine, random testing.
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