Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed eCollection eComments Requested; Revision; Correction, 46974 [2019-19145]
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Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 173 / Friday, September 6, 2019 / Notices
patient information, to which he had
access based on his position of trust as
a V.A. physician, to create fraudulent
invoices in an attempt to cover up his
income tax evasion. . . . These factors
underscore the seriousness of his
dishonest scheme.’’ Jeffrey S. Stein,
M.D., HHS Appeals Board, at 6. It is this
activity, which demonstrates a lack of
integrity, coupled with Respondent’s
statement attempting to minimize the
connection of his crimes to his medical
practice that give me the most pause in
determining the nature or
appropriateness of a sanction in this
case. See Dubin, 61 FR at 60728
(revoking based on respondent’s
‘‘continual use of the Medical
Assistance claims, the names and
provider numbers of his employee
dentists without their permission’’ and
finding that ‘‘ ‘these actions cast
substantial doubt on Respondent’s
integrity.’ ’’).
Respondent must convince the
Administrator that his acceptance of
responsibility and remorse are
sufficiently credible to demonstrate that
the misconduct will not recur. In some
circumstances, the Agency has found
that repentance and honesty weigh in
favor of continuing to entrust the
respondent with a registration. See, e.g.,
Melvin N. Seglin, M.D., 63 FR 70431,
70433 (1998) (The ALJ was ‘‘ ‘persuaded
that Respondent has accepted
responsibility for his misconduct and
that is not likely to recur.’ The Deputy
Administrator agree[d] with [the ALJ],
finding it significant that Respondent
did not attempt to conceal his
misconduct and in fact was quite
straightforward with the investigator.’’).
Here, Respondent pled guilty and stated
remorse and seemingly accepted
responsibility, but the crime itself
demonstrates a complex scheme in
which he misused patients’ personal
information to conceal his original
crime of tax fraud. See RFAA Ex. 3, at
7.
If Respondent were to repeat such
dishonest interference in the context of
a DEA investigation, it could impact the
Agency’s mission in preventing the
diversion and misuse of controlled
substances. DEA budgets for
approximately 1,625 Diversion positions
involved in regulating more than 1.8
million registrants overall.5 Ensuring
that a registrant is honest and does not
avoid detection through fraudulent
documentation is crucial to the
Agency’s ability to complete its mission
5 See DEA FY2020 Budget Request available at
https://www.justice.gov/jmd/page/file/1142431/
download.
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of preventing diversion within such a
large regulated population.
‘‘While mandatory exclusion can
provide an independent basis for
revocation, DEA has often reserved that
sanction to cases where ‘there were
serious questions as to the integrity of
the registrant.’’ Kwan Bo Jin, M.D., 77
FR 35021, 35026 (2012) (quoting Anibal
P. Herrera, M.D., 61 FR 65075, 65078
(1996) (permitting the continuation of
registration with restriction where
respondent fully accepts responsibility
and has paid restitution)). I will refrain
from revocation in this case because of
the conflicting information in the record
with regard to Respondent’s integrity
and because I appreciate the forthright
nature of his statements regarding
acceptance of responsibility. However,
in light of his diminishment of the full
extent of his crimes, and without having
the benefit of a hearing to weigh the
credibility of such statements, I believe
that the record presents a legitimate
concern that Respondent might impede
a DEA investigation in the same manner
as he obstructed his IRS investigation.
Even though he has accepted
responsibility and demonstrated
remorse, he also glossed over the misuse
of patient information, which seems
consistent with his prior behavior of
concealing his crimes. I am concerned
that, although Respondent may not be
likely to commit tax fraud again, he may
be dishonest in dealing with Diversion
Investigators or DEA Special Agents in
the future. I believe that some degree of
sanction is appropriate to prevent
Respondent from circumventing the
CSA requirements to the detriment of its
effective implementation in order to
protect the public. Therefore, I will
suspend Respondent’s registration for a
period of two years. The suspension is
significantly less than his eight-year
federal health care program exclusion,
because the CSA is not bound by the
same minimal suspension standards as
HHS. Respondent has paid his
restitution, he has completed his
incarceration and is fulfilling his
probation, but I must ensure that he is
fully candid and cooperative and his
fraudulent behavior is not likely to recur
in order to entrust him with a CSA
registration.
Order
Pursuant to 28 CFR 0.100(b) and the
authority vested in me by 21 U.S.C.
824(a), I hereby suspend DEA Certificate
of Registration No. FS6587868 issued to
Jeffrey Stein, M.D. for a period of two
years starting from the effective date of
this Order. This Order is effective
October 7, 2019.
PO 00000
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Dated: August 23, 2019.
Uttam Dhillon,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2019–19305 Filed 9–5–19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410–09–P
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Agency Information Collection
Activities; Proposed eCollection
eComments Requested; Revision;
Correction
Executive Office for
Immigration Review, Department of
Justice.
ACTION: Notice; correction.
AGENCY:
The Department of Justice,
Executive Office for Immigration
Review, submitted a 60-day notice for
publishing in the Federal Register on
August 28, 2019 soliciting comments to
an information collection request to the
Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) for review and approval in
accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995. The document
contained incorrect information listed
in the DATES section, providing a
comment due date of September 27,
2019.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Lauren Alder Reid, Assistant Director,
Office of Policy, Executive Office for
Immigration Review, 5107 Leesburg
Pike, Suite 2500, Falls Church, VA
22041, telephone (703) 305–0289.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Correction: In the Federal Register of
August 28, 2019, in FR Doc. 2019–
18566, on page 45173, the DATES section
is corrected to read as follows:
DATES: Comments are encouraged and
will be accepted for 60 days until
October 28, 2019.
SUMMARY:
Dated: August 30, 2019.
Melody Braswell,
Department Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2019–19145 Filed 9–5–19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410–30–P
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Notice of Lodging of Proposed
Consent Decree Under the Clean Water
Act
On August 30, 2019, the Department
of Justice lodged a proposed Consent
Decree with the United States District
Court for the Western District of
Arkansas in the lawsuit entitled United
States, et al. v. Delek Logistics
Operating, LLC, and SALA Gathering
Systems, LLC, Case No. 1:18–cv–01040–
SOH.
E:\FR\FM\06SEN1.SGM
06SEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 173 (Friday, September 6, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Page 46974]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-19145]
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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed eCollection
eComments Requested; Revision; Correction
AGENCY: Executive Office for Immigration Review, Department of Justice.
ACTION: Notice; correction.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Department of Justice, Executive Office for Immigration
Review, submitted a 60-day notice for publishing in the Federal
Register on August 28, 2019 soliciting comments to an information
collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for
review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995. The document contained incorrect information listed in the DATES
section, providing a comment due date of September 27, 2019.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lauren Alder Reid, Assistant Director,
Office of Policy, Executive Office for Immigration Review, 5107
Leesburg Pike, Suite 2500, Falls Church, VA 22041, telephone (703) 305-
0289.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Correction: In the Federal Register of August 28, 2019, in FR Doc.
2019-18566, on page 45173, the DATES section is corrected to read as
follows:
DATES: Comments are encouraged and will be accepted for 60 days until
October 28, 2019.
Dated: August 30, 2019.
Melody Braswell,
Department Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2019-19145 Filed 9-5-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-30-P
