This particular test is newsworthy only because of who is involved: it’s Elon Musk himself, erstwhile Master of DOGE and the world‘s richest man. He’s now scrapping with The New York Times about his alleged use of ketamine during his tenure at the White House.

I believe a lawsuit is already in the frame.

In support of his claim, Musk confronted reporters with a photograph of what appeared to be a lab report dated June 11, showing test results for a range of drugs including ketamine. The report claimed he tested negative for ketamine.

Musk seemed to feel that was proof positive of abstinence.

Not exactly. I’d call it a piece of evidence in support of the notion that, at the time of the test at least, he had not used ketamine recently. That alone, however, is far from conclusive proof of continuous drug free status.

Ordinarily, ketamine is detectable in the urine for anywhere from a couple of days to, in some cases, a couple of weeks. That depends in part on the type of test used, and also the pattern of drug use– how much the user has been taking, and for how long. Both can affect the results.

As treatment and justice programs have come to rely on testing, a cottage industry has developed to facilitate cheating on the test. The most common strategy involves excessive hydration, or using water or other liquids to flush traces of drugs from the sample prior to taking the test.

It’s been at least mildly successful, provided the user avoids over- diluting the sample. I’m afraid labs check for that.

Then there are mechanical aids available for purchase. An illustration — an elaborate belt device that fits around the waist, beneath the clothing, to conceal a supply of clean urine. From there, it’s dispensed covertly through a tube, as a substitute for the real thing. Quite convincing, I’m told.

Still, the user did get caught, and the precious device confiscated. Gave the staff a good laugh the next morning.  Someone wondered how much the poor fellow spent on the contraption, and another person claimed between 300 and 400 bucks. 

Back to the Musk photo: I’m afraid that simply holding up a sheet of paper with numbers on it may be the single least persuasive way to demonstrate abstinence. Especially if the alleged  test wasn’t even monitored by an independent observer.

There are simply too many ways to fake the results. And far, far too many incentives to try.