90 FR 75 pgs. 16706-16707 - John Stanton, M.D.; Decision and Order
Type: NOTICEVolume: 90Number: 75Pages: 16706 - 16707
Pages: 16706, 16707FR document: [FR Doc. 2025-06825 Filed 4-18-25; 8:45 am]
Agency: Justice Department
Sub Agency: Drug Enforcement Administration
Official PDF Version: PDF Version
[top]
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Drug Enforcement Administration
John Stanton, M.D.; Decision and Order
On November 22, 2023, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA or Government) issued an Order to Show Cause (OSC) to John Stanton, M.D., of Clarksville, Tennessee (Registrant). Request for Final Agency Action (RFAA), Exhibit (RFAAX) 2, at 1, 4. The OSC proposed the revocation of Registrant's DEA Certificate of Registration No. BS1750048, alleging that Registrant's registration should be revoked because Registrant is "currently without authority to handle controlled substances in the State of Tennessee, the state in which [he is] registered with DEA." Id. at 2 (citing 21 U.S.C. 824(a)(3)). 1
Footnotes:
1 ?The OSC also proposed the revocation of Registrant's registration because Registrant was convicted of a federal felony related to controlled substances and was mandatorily excluded from participation in Medicare, Medicaid, and all federal health care programs pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7(a). Id. at 1. In its RFAA, the Government referenced these additional allegations in the introductory paragraph, the procedural background, and the proposed findings of fact. RFAA, at 1-3. However, in the "Proposed Conclusions of Law and Argument" section of the RFAA through the remainder of the document, the Government only discussed the aforementioned loss of state authority allegation. Id. at 3-6. As such, the Government appears to have dropped the felony conviction and mandatory exclusion allegations and the Agency does not consider them in this decision.
The OSC notified Registrant of his right to file a written request for hearing, and that if he failed to file such a request, he would be deemed to have waived his right to a hearing and be in default. RFAAX 2, at 3 (citing 21 CFR 1301.43). Here, Registrant did not request a hearing. RFAA, at 2. 2 "A default, unless excused, shall be deemed to constitute a waiver of the registrant's/applicant's right to a hearing and an admission of the factual allegations of the [OSC]." 21 CFR 1301.43(e).
Footnotes:
2 ?Based on the Government's submissions in its RFAA dated February 14, 2024, the Agency finds that service of the OSC on Registrant was likely adequate. Specifically, an included Declaration from a DEA Diversion Investigator (DI) indicates that on or about December 11, 2023, Registrant was sent a copy of the OSC through certified mail to his registered address, the address where he is currently incarcerated, and two separate attorney addresses. RFAAX 3, at 1-2. Though there is no documented confirmation of receipt from either Registrant or his attorneys, all copies of the OSC that were mailed had tracking numbers attached. Id., Attachments A-D.
Further, "[i]n the event that a registrant . . . is deemed to be in default . . . DEA may then file a request for final agency action with the Administrator, along with a record to support its request. In such circumstances, the Administrator may enter a default final order pursuant to [21 CFR] §?1316.67." Id. §?1301.43(f)(1). Here, the Government has requested final agency action based on Registrant's default pursuant to 21 CFR 1301.43(c), (f), 1301.46. RFAA, at 3; see also 21 CFR 1316.67.
Findings of Fact
The Agency finds that, in light of Registrant's default, the factual allegations in the OSC are admitted. According to the OSC, on April 27, 2023, the State of Tennessee Department of Health, Board of Medical Examiners revoked Registrant's Tennessee medical license. RFAAX 2 at 2. According to Tennessee online records, of which the Agency takes official notice, Registrant's Tennessee medical license remains revoked. 3 Tennessee Department of Health Licensure Verification, https://internet.health.tn.gov/Licensure (last visited date of signature of this Order). Accordingly, the Agency finds that Registrant is not licensed to practice as a physician in Tennessee, the state in which he is registered with DEA. 4
Footnotes:
3 ?Under the Administrative Procedure Act, an agency "may take official notice of facts at any stage in a proceeding-even in the final decision." United States Department of Justice, Attorney General's Manual on the Administrative Procedure Act 80 (1947) (Wm. W. Gaunt & Sons, Inc., Reprint 1979).
4 ?Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 556(e), "[w]hen an agency decision rests on official notice of a material fact not appearing in the evidence in the record, a party is entitled, on timely request, to an opportunity to show the contrary." The material fact here is that Registrant, as of the date of this Decision, is not licensed to practice medicine in Tennessee. Accordingly, Registrant may dispute the Agency's finding by filing a properly supported motion for reconsideration of findings of fact within fifteen calendar days of the date of this Order. Any such motion and response shall be filed and served by email to the other party and to Office of the Administrator, Drug Enforcement Administration at dea.addo.attorneys@dea.gov.
Discussion
[top] Pursuant to 21 U.S.C. 824(a)(3), the Attorney General is authorized to suspend or revoke a registration issued under 21 U.S.C. 823 "upon a finding that the registrant . . . has had his State license or registration suspended . . . [or] revoked . . . by competent State
Footnotes:
5 ?This rule derives from the text of two provisions of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). First, Congress defined the term "practitioner" to mean "a physician . . . or other person licensed, registered, or otherwise permitted, by . . . the jurisdiction in which he practices . . ., to distribute, dispense, . . . [or] administer . . . a controlled substance in the course of professional practice." 21 U.S.C. 802(21). Second, in setting the requirements for obtaining a practitioner's registration, Congress directed that "[t]he Attorney General shall register practitioners . . . if the applicant is authorized to dispense . . . controlled substances under the laws of the State in which he practices." 21 U.S.C. 823(g)(1). Because Congress has clearly mandated that a practitioner possess state authority in order to be deemed a practitioner under the CSA, DEA has held repeatedly that revocation of a practitioner's registration is the appropriate sanction whenever he is no longer authorized to dispense controlled substances under the laws of the state in which he practices. See, e.g., James L. Hooper, M.D., 76 FR at 71371-72; Sheran Arden Yeates, M.D., 71 FR 39130, 39131 (2006); Dominick A. Ricci, M.D., 58 FR 51104, 51105 (1993); Bobby Watts, M.D., 53 FR 11919, 11920 (1988); Frederick Marsh Blanton, M.D., 43 FR at 27617.
According to Tennessee statute, "dispense" means "to deliver a controlled substance to an ultimate user or research subject by or pursuant to the lawful order of a practitioner, including the prescribing, administering, packaging, labeling, or compounding necessary to prepare the substance for that delivery." Tenn. Code Ann. sec. 39-17-402(7) (2024). Further, a "practitioner" means "a physician . . . or other person licensed, registered or otherwise permitted to distribute, dispense, conduct research with respect to or administer a controlled substance in the course of professional practice or research in this state." Id. at sec. 39-17-402(23)(A).
Here, the undisputed evidence in the record is that Registrant lacks authority to practice medicine in Tennessee. As discussed above, an individual must be a licensed practitioner to dispense a controlled substance in Tennessee. Thus, because Registrant lacks authority to practice medicine in Tennessee and, therefore, is not authorized to handle controlled substances in Tennessee, Registrant is not eligible to maintain a DEA registration. Accordingly, the Agency will order that Registrant's DEA registration be revoked.
Order
Pursuant to 28 CFR 0.100(b) and the authority vested in me by 21 U.S.C. 824(a), I hereby revoke DEA Certificate of Registration No. BS1750048 issued to John Stanton, M.D.
Further, pursuant to 28 CFR 0.100(b) and the authority vested in me by 21 U.S.C. 823(g)(1), I hereby deny any pending applications of John Stanton, M.D., to renew or modify this registration, as well as any other pending application of John Stanton, M.D., for additional registration in Tennessee. This Order is effective May 21, 2025.
Signing Authority
This document of the Drug Enforcement Administration was signed on April 15, 2025, by Acting Administrator Derek Maltz. That document with the original signature and date is maintained by DEA. For administrative purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DEA Federal Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit the document in electronic format for publication, as an official document of DEA. This administrative process in no way alters the legal effect of this document upon publication in the Federal Register .
Heather Achbach,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, Drug Enforcement Administration.
[FR Doc. 2025-06825 Filed 4-18-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-09-P