SALT LAKE CITY — Home is a lot louder these days for Nick Hulse and Kalie Jones. As they settle into the sounds of their children making snacks or crafting on weeknights, they know these are moments they had to fight for.Jones and Hulse weren't just fighting to overcome addiction so their children could come home from foster care. They were also fighting positive drug test results they insist were wrong.
Nick Hulse and Kalie Jones called the KSL Investigators when they received what they believe were inaccurate drug test results. They fought to overcome addiction so their children could come home from foster care and they fought positive drug test results they insist were wrong. revealed the company was violating the terms of its contract in Utah by frequently substituting mouth swabs for urine tests when a same-sex employee was not available to monitor collection of the sample.
Nick Hulse and Kalie Jones’ children are now living with them full time again. That's after a Utah judge threw out Jones' positive test results in question, citing "serious concerns." "The Utah DCFS contract was a competitive bid process through a Request for Proposals as the current contract period with Averhealth had ended," Averhealth director of marketing Jacquie Sheehey wrote in an email to KSL.
Sheehey wrote in an email to KSL, "Averhealth is cooperating with the Department of Justice and the Department has not made any allegations against Averhealth."Utah judges considered Averhealth test results in child welfare cases for more than two years, Jones noted.Utah’s DCFS contracted with Averhealth from Sept. 2020 through Jan. 2023. Court filings show Averhealth has been under investigation by the Department of Justice.
"These are low enough to be consistent with an inadvertent exposure as opposed to somebody who's drinking alcoholic beverages," Dr. Eugene Schwilke testified. Proulx said people are often punished before there's time to challenge the results. He believes that happened recently to one of his clients. Proulx said the uptick in complaints prompted him to get in the habit of requesting litigation packets from Averhealth any time his clients expressed concerns over the accuracy of results.
Utah company Beechtree Diagnostics is now providing drug testing services for DCFS. The five-year, $6 million contract started in February, after a contract with Averhealth expired.
Department of Children For Sale