# DEA Number Key: `identity.medical.dea_number` Drug Enforcement Administration registration number for US prescribers. Format: 2 letters followed by 7 digits. First letter indicates registrant type (A/B/F/M for practitioners, P/R for distributors). Check digit is last digit, computed via weighted sum of odd and even position digits. Page: Samples: `AB1234563`, `BS4567890`, `FH1357905` ## Background ### Origin A DEA number is an identifier that the US Drug Enforcement Administration assigns to health care providers so that they can prescribe controlled substances.[[1]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DEA_number) The DEA's Pharmacist's Manual says that knowing how a DEA registration number is constructed can be a useful tool for recognising a forged prescription.[[2]](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) Before October 1, 1985, DEA policy gave physicians, dentists, veterinarians and other practitioners registration numbers starting with the letter A.[[2]](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) New registration numbers issued to practitioners after that date begin with the letter B or F.[[2]](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) Registration numbers issued to mid-level practitioners begin with the letter M.[[2]](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) The first letter is almost always followed by the first letter of the registrant's last name, such as J for Jones or S for Smith.[[2]](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) A computer-generated sequence of seven numbers comes next, as in the manual's example MJ3614511.[[2]](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) According to Wikipedia, the DEA ran out of B for practitioner registrations and began issuing F as the initial letter instead.[[1]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DEA_number) ### Use A prescription for a controlled substance must include the practitioner's full name, address and DEA registration number, under 21 CFR 1306.05(a).[[2]](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) Wikipedia says the DEA prefers the National Provider Identifier for general identification and reserves DEA numbers for authenticating and tracking prescriptions.[[1]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DEA_number) To check the last digit, add the sum of the first, third and fifth digits to twice the sum of the second, fourth and sixth digits.[[3]](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3847977/) The last digit of that total should be the same as the last digit of the DEA number.[[3]](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3847977/) A passing check digit shows only that a number is well formed, not that the registration is current. (Meridian's view) The Pharmacist's Manual points registrants to DEA's CSA Registration Tools to verify a practitioner's DEA number.[[2]](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) Practitioners employed by a hospital may prescribe under the hospital's registration, with the hospital assigning each of them a specific internal code number.[[2]](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) A related identifier, the Unique Identification Number or X number, consists of two letters and seven numbers with X always as the first letter.[[2]](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) The manual's example is that AB1234567 would have a UIN of XB1234567.[[2]](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) ### Where you'll meet it The arcos R package, which serves raw ARCOS data, looks up retail and chain pharmacies by a BUYER\_DEA\_NO field.[[4]](https://wpinvestigative.github.io/arcos/reference/index.html) The same package looks up reporters, including manufacturers and distributors, by a REPORTER\_DEA\_NO field.[[4]](https://wpinvestigative.github.io/arcos/reference/index.html) Its example output for Mingo County, West Virginia lists BUYER\_DEA\_NO values such as BM2933263 and AM2373051.[[5]](https://wpinvestigative.github.io/arcos/reference/pharm_tracts.html) ## Sources 1. [DEA number - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DEA_number) — secondary source 2. [Pharmacist's Manual: An Informational Outline of the Controlled Substances Act](https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/GDP/%28DEA-DC-046R1%29%28EO-DEA154R1%29_Pharmacist's_Manual_DEA.pdf) — documentation 3. [Federal Controlled Substances Act: Controlled Substances Prescriptions](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3847977/) — secondary source 4. [Function reference • arcos](https://wpinvestigative.github.io/arcos/reference/index.html) — dataset 5. [Get census tract GEOID for each pharmacy based on BUYER\_DEA\_NO (Only includes retail and chain pharmacy designations) — pharm\_tracts • arcos](https://wpinvestigative.github.io/arcos/reference/pharm_tracts.html) — dataset