UIL survey: Few Texas schools test for steroids, By: Cody Hale

April 23, 2006, The Dallas Morning News

AUSTIN – Only 53 schools in Texas test athletes for steroids, according to a University Interscholastic League survey.

Of the 1,227 Texas school districts that received the medical advisory committee's survey, 1,170 – roughly 95 percent – responded.

"I think this says that our schools are concerned about steroid abuse, and we want to make sure we get down the correct information about it," said committee member Dr. Cary Tanamachi. "The thing I'm pleased to see is the majority of our students are not abusing the drug."

A significant reason most schools don't test is the cost.

It would cost an average of $19,000 each year for a school to administer the tests, UIL athletic coordinator Mark Cousins said at the committee's meeting Sunday.

"I don't know if we'll be able to mandate steroid testing because of the cost, and it's more of a local district issue," said Tanamachi, who is also on the Mesquite school board. "Steroids is not just a problem in the schools, it's a problem in society. Our job is to educate the school districts about the problem, and they will then handle a lot of the responsibilities."

Mesquite is one of at least eight area school districts that tests for steroids in some manner.

A testing program began in schools in 1996, and 10 positive results for anabolic steroids have been discovered. According to the survey, 4,138 tests given last year yielded one positive result.