Puff test?

• Author: Mayer, Elizabeth
• Position: National

Does your school have a right to know if you had a cigarette over the weekend? Some officials think so. And a recent Supreme Court decision, upholding random drug tests in schools, could make it easier to add tobacco to the list.

In Blackford County, Indiana, students who participate in extracurriculars or take driver's ed can be asked to give up a urine sample for tests that include tobacco. School districts in Alabama and Florida are also reportedly using or considering such tests.

Some officials see tobacco as a "gateway" drug that opens doors to serious abuse. Teen smokers are 8 times more likely to use illicit drugs and 11 times more likely to drink heavily than nonsmokers, studies say. (Plus smoking is...