CHARLESTON — West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey has asked the U.S. Secretary of Commerce and the DEA administrator why the agencies now limit access to the Controlled Substances Act Registration Information Database.
“This database was part of the DEA’s response to some serious issues brought to light in a bombshell report conducted by the Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General in 2019,” Morrisey wrote in a May 8 letter. “This office raised similar questions as the OIG back in 2018 and even earlier. ….
“This information must be freely available to the public, not just those entities DEA believes will use it in a way the agency approves.”
Morrisey says the database was intended to increase transparency about the DEA’s active and retired registrations. He also called it “an essential tool” for pharmacies to check a provider’s status before dispensing opioids.
“The federal government’s response to reports exposing its failures that contributed to the opioid crisis’s breathtaking loss of life cannot be to hide what our public servants are doing about it now,” Morrisey wrote in the letter. “Your agencies should welcome public accountability, not hide from it.”
Morrisey says the database also provides public accountability regarding DEA registration decisions. Access was previously available to the public through open sources such as LexisNexis or subscription services.
Now, the DEA and Department of Commerce have moved the database behind a firewall. Access is granted by the DEA and is approved “on a case-by-case basis.” Applicants must comply with DEA rules that include not sharing the information with others, as it considers this “unauthorized distribution” that could lead to “civil and/or criminal prosecution.”
“I urge the DEA and Department of Commerce to reconsider their new database policies and take immediate action to address these concerns,” Morrisey said. “I’m advocating for better public access to DEA data that was previously available.
“Agencies should welcome public accountability and I trust they’ll do the right thing.”
The four-page letter was addressed to DEA Administrator Anne Milgram and Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo.
I’m writing to demand answers for the people of West Virginia,” Morrisey wrote. “Why did DEA and the Department of Commerce limit access to the Controlled Substances Act Registration Information Database? How many applications has DEA denied, and on what basis? What criteria does DEA use when issuing access? And what is DEA doing to advertise that this information exists — in whatever form it may live now — and make it easier for third parties to access it? I also urge you to take immediate action to address these concerns.
“This information must be freely available to the public, not just those entities DEA believes will use it in a way the agency approves.
“The federal government’s response to reports exposing its failures that contributed to the opioid crisis’s breathtaking loss of life cannot be to hide what our public servants are doing about it now. Your agencies should welcome public accountability, not hide from it. I trust you will do the right thing. And I look forward to your fast response explaining how you plan to do just that.”
