DEA

U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Pharmacy

The DEA is a branch of the U.S. Department of Justice. Their mission is to enforce the
Controlled Substances Act. In pharmacy; they monitor a closed system of distribution for
controlled substances. What that means is that all individuals and companies handling
controlled substances are required to keep accurate inventories and records of every
transaction involving those controlled substances.

In preparation for the PTCB or ICPT exam, it's recommended to become familiar with
Controlled Substance Schedule Definitions:

D.E.A. Schedule definitions:

Schedule I - No accepted medical use. Extremely high potential for abuse. High potential
for psychological and physical dependency. A few examples are: Marijuana, Heroin and
MDMA(Extasy).

Schedule II - Does have medical use. High potential for abuse. Relative potential for
psychological and physical dependency. A few examples are: Oxycodone, Codeine and
Ritalin.

Schedule III - Does have medical use. Moderate abuse potential exists, but less than Sch
II. Examples are: Vicodin and Tylenol w/Codeine.

Schedule IV - Abuse potential exists, but less than Sch III. Examples are: Ambien,
Darvocet and Lorazepam.

Schedule V - Lowest abuse potential of the DEA Sch. Abuse potential exists, but less than
Sch IV. Example: Cough medicine w/codeine or anti-diarrheals.

D.E.A. Form 222 - must be used whenever Sch I or II drugs are bought, sold or
transferred between Pharmacies or qualified distributors. The forms are only available
through the DEA and errors are not acceptable on the form. In the case of an error, the
form must be voided and kept on file and a new form used. For Sch III - V, a form 222 is
not necessary.
 DEA number verification
Drug Enforcement Agency Numbers
With advanced technology now available for
DEA number verification, most of you will be letting a computer verify DEA numbers over
a fast internet connection that will verify the number and the identity of the prescribing
entity. However, it's important to know the basics about how the numbers work.

The
Drug Enforcement Agency assigns authorized Practitioners and Hospitals a unique number
in order to keep track of the distribution of Scheduled drugs. The instructions below explain
how a DEA number verification is done. DEA numbers can be verified by using the last
number, which is known as the Check Digit.

Let's look at an example:

DEA Number - BJ6125341

6+2+3 = 11
↑ ↑ ↑ ↓
BJ61 25 341 +
↓ ↓ ↓ ↓
1 + 5 + 4 = 10 x 2 = 20

↓
= 31

1. Add together the 1st, 3rd and 5th digits.

2. add together the 2nd, 4th and 6th digits. Double it.
3. Add the two totals together.
4. The secong digit in that total is the check digit.

In retail pharmacy, forgeries are occasionally presented in an attempt to obtain narcotics.

Using the check digit is one method to detect the legitimacy of the order.

The numbers are preceded by two letters. The first letter represents the type of practice or
institution the DEA number is issued to. The second letter represents the first letter of the
practitioners last name. As such, that is another way to check the legitimacy of the DEA
number. If the number starts with BJ and the script is from a Dr. Shaw, that's a red flag.

Who regulates Pharmacy in the US?

 Pharmacy is regulated by several agencies. As a Pharmacy Technician It's
mandatory to generally know which does what to prepare for the PTCB or ExCPT
exams.
These agencies do more than what is listed below. We're just covering the areas
that involve Pharmacy.

FDA
Food and Drug Administration
- Approve new drugs to be sold in the US
- Process New Drug Applications (NDA)
- Regulate package inserts
- Regulate advertising of drugs
- issue recalls
- Federal agency

DEA
Drug Enforcement Agency
- Federal Agency (U.S. Dept. of Justice)
- Enforce the CSA (controlled substances act)
- Track controlled substances manufactured and sold
- Investigates all violations involving controlled subtances
- Set the DEA Sch. Definitions
- Issue DEA Numbers

BOP
Board of Pharmacy (each state)
- Regulate licensing of Pharmacists
- Regulate licensing of Pharmacy Technicians
- Set state laws / requirements
- Outline the operating guidelines in the pharmacy
- Investigate violations of the operating guidelines
- Determine state regulated controlled substances*
- State agency

* States may control drugs not controlled by DEA.

The Joint Commission

Formerly JCAHO
Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations
- Watches over Healthcare Organizations
- Third Party Auditors / Regulators for insurance Providers

**They changed their name in 2009

How to remember who does what?

When trying to determine which agency regulates what, first ask if the question involves a
controlled substance. If it does then DEA will likely be the answer. If the question involved a
drug that is not controlled, FDA will likely be the answer. If the question sounds state
specific or involves licensing, then the BOP is likely the answer.