On March 18, 2025, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA or Government) issued an Order to Show Cause (OSC) to Latania Akers-White, M.D., of Richmond, Virginia ( printed page 55924) (Registrant). Request for Final Agency Action (RFAA), Exhibit (RFAAX), at 1, 4. The OSC proposed the revocation of Registrant's Certificate of Registration, No. FA2343630, 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 Commonwealth of Virginia, the state in which [she is] registered with DEA.” Id. at 2 (citing 21 U.S.C. 824(a)(3)).^[1]

The OSC notified Registrant of her right to file a written request for hearing, and that if she failed to file such a request, she would be deemed to have waived her right to a hearing and be in default. Id. (citing 21 CFR 1301.43). Here, Registrant did not request a hearing, and the Agency finds her to be in default. RFAA, at 3.^[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).

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. at 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), and 1301.46. RFAA, at 4; see also21 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 or about July 11, 2024, the Virginia Department of Health Professions suspended Registrant's Virginia medical license. RFAAX 1, at 2. According to Virginia online records, of which the Agency takes official notice,^[3] Registrant's Virginia medical license is currently “Suspended.” Virginia Department of Health Professions License Lookup, dhp.virginiainteractive.org/​Lookup/​Index (last visited date of signature of this Order). Accordingly, the Agency finds that Registrant is not licensed to practice medicine in Virginia, the state in which she is registered with DEA.^[4]

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]

According to Virginia statute, “dispense” means “to deliver a drug to an ultimate user or research subject by or pursuant to the lawful order of a practitioner, including the prescribing and administering, packaging, labeling, or compounding necessary to prepare the substance for that delivery.” Va. Code § 54.1-3401 (2025). Additionally, Virginia statute defines “practitioner” as “a physician . . . or other person licensed, registered, or otherwise permitted to distribute, dispense, prescribe and administer, or conduct research with respect to a controlled substance in the course of professional practice or research in [Virginia].” Id.

Here, the undisputed evidence in the record is that Registrant lacks authority to practice medicine in Virginia. As discussed above, a physician must be a licensed practitioner to dispense a controlled substance in Virginia. Thus, because Registrant lacks authority to practice medicine in Virginia and, therefore, is not authorized to handle controlled substances in Virginia, 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. FA2343630 issued to Latania Akers-White, M.D. Further, pursuant to 28 CFR 0.100(b) and the ( printed page 55925) authority vested in me by 21 U.S.C. 823(g)(1), I hereby deny any pending applications of Latania Akers-White, M.D., to renew or modify this registration, as well as any other pending application of Latania Akers-White, M.D., for additional registration in Virginia. This Order is effective January 5, 2026.

Signing Authority

This document of the Drug Enforcement Administration was signed on November 24, 2025, by Administrator Terrance C. 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 .