Home › Guides

Training and Screening Medical Couriers Get Asked For

The training and screening a medical courier needs is set by the courier company that hires or contracts them, or by the labs, hospitals and clinics that company serves. Couriers are often asked for bloodborne pathogens training, HIPAA training, a drug test and a background check. Get the exact list from the company or client before you buy anything. This guide explains where each request comes from in federal rules, and what a course can and cannot do for you. It is not legal advice.

Updated October 24, 2026 · Checked against the official sources listed at the end

Start with the company's or client's list

Ask the courier company, or the healthcare client, for its requirements in writing. Ask the same questions for each item.

Which training or screening do you need, and by when?
Do you require a specific provider or screening company? If so, use that one.
Do you accept a certificate or result from any provider?
Who must receive the result or certificate?
How often must it be renewed?

Bloodborne pathogens: an employer duty

OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogens standard applies to all occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials (29 CFR 1910.1030(a)). Occupational exposure means reasonably anticipated skin, eye, mucous membrane or parenteral contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials that may result from an employee's duties.

If a courier is an employee with that kind of exposure, the employer must provide the training at no cost and during working hours, at initial assignment and at least annually after that (1910.1030(g)(2)). The training must include an opportunity for interactive questions and answers with the person conducting it. OSHA has said that means direct access to a qualified trainer during the session, so an online course alone does not meet that part.

If you work as an independent contractor, ask the company or client what bloodborne pathogens training it requires of you.

HIPAA: a covered entity and contract duty

HIPAA's training rule, 45 CFR 164.530(b), applies to covered entities, such as health care providers, and their workforce.

When a covered entity lets a business associate handle protected health information on its behalf, it must get satisfactory assurance that the business associate will safeguard the information, documented in a written contract (45 CFR 164.502(e)). That contract must require the business associate to use appropriate safeguards and to make sure its subcontractors agree to the same restrictions (45 CFR 164.504(e)). Business associates must also have a security awareness and training program for their workforce (45 CFR 164.308(a)(5)).

Not every courier is a business associate. HHS says a business associate agreement is not required when protected health information is sent through a conduit, such as the US Postal Service, certain private couriers, and their electronic equivalents. HHS says that exception covers only transmission services, including temporary storage. Entities that access the information on a regular or frequent basis to perform a service are not conduits.

Whether a courier company is a conduit or a business associate depends on what it actually does. That is a question for the company and its attorney. Either way, a client may still ask couriers for HIPAA training as a business requirement.

Drug tests and background checks

Courier companies and their clients often ask for a drug test and a background check at hire. If they name a specific screening company, use it.

If they accept any provider, Pact sells a $40 non-DOT 10-panel urine drug test, collected at a Quest Diagnostics patient service center, with MRO review. Pact also sells background checks run by Checkr: Standard ($32) and Premium ($70, which adds a 7-year county criminal search and a FACIS Level 3 healthcare sanctions search). You can name the company to receive the result at checkout.

If the job is covered by federal Department of Transportation rules, the employer must order a DOT test. A non-DOT test does not replace it.

Employers using background reports for hiring have their own Fair Credit Reporting Act duties, including a standalone written disclosure and the person's written authorization before getting the report (15 U.S.C. 1681b(b)(2)).

What a course can and cannot do

No course "certifies" a courier to work. OSHA says it does not approve, certify, or endorse individual trainers or training programs. HHS says it does not certify any persons or products as "HIPAA compliant."

Pact sells two courses couriers are often asked about, each $34.95. Healthcare Bloodborne Pathogens is an online certification course from ProTrainings. Confirm with your program or clinical site that this course meets its requirements before you enroll. HIPAA is an online certification course from ProTrainings. Confirm with your program or clinical site that this course meets its requirements before you enroll. ProTrainings makes and runs both courses; Pact sells them and handles your order. Buyers must be 18 or older.

Common questions

Is there a required medical courier certification?

Ask the company or client you will drive for. The federal rules in this guide put training duties on employers (OSHA) and on covered entities and business associates (HIPAA). They do not describe a courier certification.

Do medical couriers need bloodborne pathogens training?

If a courier is an employee with occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials, OSHA requires the employer to provide training at no cost, at initial assignment and at least annually. Contractors should ask the company or client what it requires.

Do medical couriers need HIPAA training?

HIPAA's training duties fall on covered entities and, under the Security Rule, business associates. Some couriers act only as conduits. A client may still require HIPAA training as a business requirement, so ask.

Do I need a DOT drug test as a courier?

Only if the job is covered by federal DOT rules. In that case the employer must order a DOT test. Pact's $40 10-panel is a non-DOT test.

Can I order my own drug test and background check?

Yes. Job applicants and workers can order from Pact and name the employer to receive the result. If the company names a specific screening company, use that one instead.