Starting next week, some police officers in five counties will be asking drivers to allow a swab of their mouth to determine if they've been using drugs.
Michigan State Police say it's part of an effort to cut down on "drugged driving."
The one-year program starts Wednesday in Berrien, Delta, Kent, St. Clair and Washtenaw counties. Col. Kriste Kibbey Etue says drivers "under the influence of drugs pose a risk to themselves and others on the road."
Police officers who are trained as drug recognition experts will collect oral fluid if they suspect a driver is impaired by drugs.
A refusal is treated as a civil infraction. State police say there were 236 drug-related traffic fatalities in 2016, a 32 percent increase.
