Question: In February 2014, I was prescribed Hydrocod/Hom5-1.5 mg/5ml for a persistent cough I had that wouldn't go away. I did not take all of the cough syrup so when my cough came back at the end of July I decided to take the last remaining cough syrup that I had left. A couple days later, I was given a random drug test. When I took the random drug/ urine test it showed up that I had codeine in my system and not hydrocodone. Therefore, I failed my drug test. I know that hydrocodone is a synthetic for codeine but the lab stated that hydrocodone does not show up as codeine on a urine test. My job placed me on paid leave for a month and now I have an upcoming hearing to clear my name. If I can't explain why codeine was in my system, my job will terminate me. I am very distraught because I have not taken any medication except for the cough syrup I was prescribed. I rarely even take medication ( except for high blood pressure medicine and a baby aspirin), never take other people's medication, or never abuse drugs. What could have caused my urine test to test positive for codeine when I didn't take anything with codeine in it? Could the hydrocodone have metablized differently in my body since the prescription was almost 6 months old. The only other explanation that I can think of is if the pharmacy put the wrong medicine in my prescription bottle, but I can't prove it. After I took the last of the cough syrup, my prescription bottle was thrown away. Never in a million years, would I ever think I would be placed in this predicament. I don't know what to do. I have been 100% honest with my job. I even provided proof that I was prescribed cough syrup. Unfortunately, it is not what was found in my system during the urine test. My job claims that I had no prescription for what was in my system. My wife is almost nine months pregnant and we rely heavily on my income. Without my job, I don't know how we will make it. Please help!!!!!!