A Columbus mother says a court-ordered drug test tied to a Franklin County Children Services case came back positive even though she insists the result was wrong, and now she wants answers about the lab that handled her sample. Her dispute is putting fresh local pressure on Averhealth, a national drug-testing company used by courts and child-welfare agencies. Families and advocates say test results can make or break custody and reunification decisions, so how those tests are run is not just a technical detail, it is life-altering.
The woman first went public through a report by ABC6, which says she contacted the station after the disputed result affected her custody case. The station says its investigators requested contracts and invoices from Franklin County Children Services and are still waiting for a response. ABC6 also reported that municipal court officials told the outlet they have reduced some direct contracts with the lab, although they continue to rely on testing vendors.
According to Franklin County Children Services, Averhealth is listed on the agency's community-partnerships page, a roster of local providers and partners that does not spell out contract specifics or any testing error rates. That lack of public detail has fueled calls from parents and advocates for clearer information about how court-ordered drug screens are arranged and monitored.
Federal Settlement And National Reporting
In June 2024 Averhealth, operating as Avertest LLC, agreed to pay about $1.34 million to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act that it billed the state of Michigan for tests without the required confirmations, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice. Later reporting by ProPublica described internal concerns about how the lab was managed and noted that Michigan's child-welfare agency stopped using the company while the probe played out.
Local Court Contracts And Changes
City legislative records show Franklin County Municipal Court has approved multiple contracts with Avertest and Averhealth for drug testing and SCRAM monitoring going back at least to 2021, with details recorded in city council files. The court's probation web pages list Averhealth as a vendor, and ABC6 reported that the court has scaled back some direct agreements and says it now uses an independent lab for certain tests.
What This Means For Parents And Cases
The DOJ announcement emphasized that "the claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability," a standard legal caveat that still leaves families wondering what it means for their cases on the ground. Parents and advocates interviewed in coverage say a disputed positive can stall reunification or cut into parenting time, and that challenging a test result often requires separate confirmation testing or a legal fight, both of which can be expensive. ProPublica reported that former employees and whistleblowers raised red flags about staffing levels, equipment upkeep and pressure to move results quickly, problems critics argue can increase the chance of an incorrect result.
Company Response And Next Steps
Averhealth has publicly defended the reliability of its tests and has said it agreed to the federal settlement in order to avoid the cost and distraction of drawn-out litigation, without admitting any wrongdoing, according to trade coverage of the DOJ case. Compliance Week reported that the company maintains it "fully performed" under its Michigan contract. County officials say they review vendor performance, while advocates argue that posting contract terms and data on testing errors would give families and courts a better shot at judging how much weight to give those lab reports.
For the Columbus mother at the center of this dispute, the issue is straightforward: she wants a process she trusts and a real chance to challenge a result that kept her from her children. Her story highlights a bigger tension that is not going away anytime soon, between the need for fast drug testing in monitoring programs and the higher forensic standards that many say should be required when results can reshape a family's future.
