Notice2025-19598
Abolghasem Rezaei, M.D.; Decision and Order
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
October 20, 2025
Issuing agencies
Justice DepartmentDrug Enforcement Administration
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 200 (Monday, October 20, 2025)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 200 (Monday, October 20, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48374-48375]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-19598]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Drug Enforcement Administration
Abolghasem Rezaei, M.D.; Decision and Order
On May 22, 2025, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA or
Government) issued an Order to Show Cause (OSC) to Abolghasem Rezaei,
M.D., of Lawton, Oklahoma (Registrant). Request for Final Agency Action
(RFAA), Exhibit (RFAAX) 1 at 1, 4. The OSC proposed the revocation of
Registrant's Certificate of Registration, No. FR0228747, alleging that
Registrant's registration should be revoked because Registrant is
``currently without authority to prescribe, administer, dispense, or
otherwise handle controlled substances in the State of Oklahoma, the
state in which [he is] registered with DEA.'' Id. at 2 (citing 21
U.S.C. 824(a)(3)).
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. Id. at
2-3 (citing 21 CFR 1301.43). Here, Registrant did not request a
hearing, and the Agency finds him to be in default. RFAA, at 2.\1\ ``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).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Based on the Government's submissions in its RFAA dated July
28, 2025, the Agency finds that service of the OSC on Registrant was
adequate. Specifically, the Government's included Notice of Service
of Order to Show Cause indicates that on June 11, 2025, Registrant
was personally served with a copy of the OSC. RFAAX 2, at 1; see
also id. at 3 (Form-DEA 12 signed by Registrant, acknowledging
receipt of the OSC).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
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 1; 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 deemed admitted. According to the
OSC, on December 5, 2024, the Oklahoma State
[[Page 48375]]
Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control (OBNDD) suspended
Registrant's OBNDD registration. RFAAX 1, at 2.\2\ According to
Oklahoma online records, of which the Agency takes official notice,\3\
Registrant's OBNDD registration is inactive. OBNDD Registrant Search,
<a href="https://obnddc.us.thentiacloud.net/webs/obnddc/register">https://obnddc.us.thentiacloud.net/webs/obnddc/register</a> (last visited
date of signature of this Order). Accordingly, the Agency finds that
Registrant is not licensed to handle controlled substances in Oklahoma,
the state in which he is registered with DEA.\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ On February 13, 2025, OBNDD upheld the suspension. Id.
\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
handle controlled substances in Oklahoma. 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 the DEA Office of the Administrator, Drug Enforcement
Administration at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f89c9d99d6999c9c97d6998c8c978a969d818bb89c9d99d69f978e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="1f7b7a7e317e7b7b70317e6b6b706d717a666c5f7b7a7e31787069">[email protected]</span></a>.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Discussion
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
authority and is no longer authorized by State law to engage in the . .
. dispensing of controlled substances.''
With respect to a practitioner, DEA has also long held that the
possession of authority to dispense controlled substances under the
laws of the state in which a practitioner engages in professional
practice is a fundamental condition for obtaining and maintaining a
practitioner's registration. Gonzales v. Oregon, 546 U.S. 243, 270
(2006) (``The Attorney General can register a physician to dispense
controlled substances `if the applicant is authorized to dispense . . .
controlled substances under the laws of the State in which he
practices.' . . . The very definition of a `practitioner' eligible to
prescribe includes physicians `licensed, registered, or otherwise
permitted, by the United States or the jurisdiction in which he
practices' to dispense controlled substances. 802(21).''). The Agency
has applied these principles consistently. See, e.g., James L. Hooper,
M.D., 76 FR 71371, 71372 (2011), pet. for rev. denied, 481 F. App'x 826
(4th Cir. 2012); Frederick Marsh Blanton, M.D., 43 FR 27616, 27617
(1978).\5\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pursuant to Oklahoma's Uniform Controlled Dangerous Substances Act,
``[e]very person who manufactures, distributes, dispenses, prescribes,
administers or uses for scientific purposes any controlled dangerous
substance within or into this state . . . shall obtain a registration
issued by the Director of the [OBNDD], in accordance with rules
promulgated by the Director.'' Okla. Stat. tit. 63, Sec. 2-302(A)
(2024).\6\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ Although there are limited circumstances under which a
person ``may lawfully possess controlled dangerous substances''
without a registration issued by the Director of the OBNDD, based on
the information furnished by the Government, none are applicable
here. Id. Sec. 2-302(H).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here, the undisputed evidence in the record is that Registrant
currently lacks authority to handle controlled substances in Oklahoma
because his OBNDD registration is inactive. As discussed above, a
person must hold a valid OBNDD registration to dispense a controlled
substance in Oklahoma, subject to limited exceptions not applicable
here. Thus, because Registrant lacks authority to handle controlled
substances in Oklahoma, 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.
FR0228747 issued to Abolghasem Rezaei, 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 Abolghasem Rezaei, M.D., to
renew or modify this registration, as well as any other pending
application of Abolghasem Rezaei, M.D., for additional registration in
Oklahoma. This Order is effective November 19, 2025.
Signing Authority
This document of the Drug Enforcement Administration was signed on
October 9, 2025, by Administrator Terrance Cole. 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. 2025-19598 Filed 10-17-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-09-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on October 20, 2025.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.