The AFL's working party on the illicit drugs issue met at League headquarters on Friday, but there was no final decision on the loophole.
"There were no decisions made today," Gold Coast chief executive Travis Auld said as he left the meeting.
"It's certainly one of the areas that's had the most discussion."
The working party will reconvene in four-six weeks, where it's hoped they'll be able to agree on exactly how to shut the loophole, while leaving open room for some element of self-reporting on medical grounds.
"We unanimously supported the medical and player welfare model on which the policy is based," AFL chief executive and working party chair Andrew Demetriou said in a statement on Friday.
"[But] it was also recognised that some aspects of the policy needed to be amended and it was agreed that the so-called self notification provisions should be tightened.
"Amendments will now be drafted for review by the AFL Players' Association and the AFL before they are discussed at the next meeting of the working party.
Auld said the original policy had been written without consideration for its possible exploitation.
"In some ways the policy probably didn't contemplate situations where players may decide to try and work around some aspects of it, and so there's an opportunity to tighten up some of those issues," Auld said.
Demetriou insisted it was only a "very small number of players" who might disrespect the policy.
Currently the loophole allows AFL players to avoid recording a strike under the illicit drugs code, by reporting drug use before facing a test.
It's believed to be one of the factors that alarmed Collingwood chief executive Gary Pert when he brought the drugs issue to the fore at a meeting on the Gold Coast ahead of last year's national draft.
Pert is part of the working party along with Demetriou, Auld, Hawthorn chief executive Stuart Fox, players association boss Matt Finnis and League medical directors..
Matt Thompson is a reporter for AFL Media. Follow him on Twitter @MattThompsonAFL
