3068 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 15 / Tuesday, January 23, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

DC 20591; telephone: (202) 267–8783. 

The Order is also available for 

inspection at the National Archives and 

Records Administration (NARA). For 

information on the availability of this 

material at NARA, call (202) 741–6030, 

or go to https://www.archives.gov/ 

federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html. 

FAA Order 7400.11, Airspace 

Designations and Reporting Points, is 

published yearly and effective on 

September 15. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John 

Fornito, Operations Support Group, 

Eastern Service Center, Federal Aviation 

Administration, P.O. Box 20636, 

Atlanta, Georgia 30320; telephone (404) 

305–6364. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Authority for This Rulemaking 

The FAA’s authority to issue rules 

regarding aviation safety is found in 

Title 49 of the U.S. Code. Subtitle 1, 

Section 106, describes the authority of 

the FAA Administrator. Subtitle VII, 

Aviation Programs, describes in more 

detail the scope of the agency’s 

authority. This rulemaking is 

promulgated under the authority 

described in Subtitle VII, Part A, 

Subpart I, Section 40103. Under that 

section, the FAA is charged with 

prescribing regulations to assign the use 

of airspace necessary to ensure the 

safety of aircraft and the efficient use of 

airspace. This regulation is within the 

scope of that authority as it makes a 

clerical correction to the geographic 

coordinates of Kane Community 

Hospital Heliport, Kane, PA. 

History 

The FAA Aeronautical Information 

Services branch found the Class E 

airspace extending upward from 700 

feet above the surface at Kane 

Community Hospital Heliport, Kane, 

PA, along with the related point in 

space coordinates, were incorrect as 

published in FAA Order 7400.11B, 

Airspace Designations and Reporting 

Points. The latitude degree for the 

heliport and the longitude degree for the 

point in space coordinates were 

incorrect in the Order. 

A clerical amendment in the legal 

description also is made to the airspace 

designation, removing the name of the 

town listed before the airport name 

description. 

Class E airspace designations are 

published in paragraph 6005 of FAA 

Order 7400.11B dated August 3, 2017, 

and effective September 15, 2017, which 

is incorporated by reference in 14 CFR 

part 71.1. The Class E airspace 

designations listed in this document 

will be published subsequently in the 

Order. 

Availability and Summary of 

Documents for Incorporation by 

Reference 

This document amends FAA Order 

7400.11B, Airspace Designations and 

Reporting Points, dated August 3, 2017, 

and effective September 15, 2017. FAA 

Order 7400.11B is publicly available as 

listed in the ADDRESSES section of this 

document. FAA Order 7400.11B lists 

Class A, B, C, D, and E airspace areas, 

air traffic service routes, and reporting 

points. 

The Rule 

This action amends Title 14 Code of 

Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 71 by 

correcting the geographic coordinates of 

the heliport reference point and point in 

space coordinates of Kane Community 

Hospital Heliport in Class E airspace 

extending upward from 700 feet above 

the surface to be in concert with the 

FAA’s aeronautical database. 

This is an administrative change and 

does not affect the boundaries, or 

operating requirements of the airspace, 

therefore, notice and public procedure 

under 5 U.S.C. 553(b) are unnecessary. 

Regulatory Notices and Analyses 

The FAA has determined that this 

regulation only involves an established 

body of technical regulations for which 

frequent and routine amendments are 

necessary to keep them operationally 

current. Therefore, this regulation: (1) Is 

not a ‘‘significant regulatory action’’ 

under Executive Order 12866; (2) is not 

a ‘‘significant rule’’ under DOT 

Regulatory Policies and Procedures (44 

FR 11034; February 26, 1979); and (3) 

does not warrant preparation of a 

regulatory evaluation as the anticipated 

impact is so minimal. Since this is a 

routine matter that only affects air traffic 

procedures and air navigation, it is 

certified that this rule, when 

promulgated, does not have a significant 

economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities under the 

criteria of the Regulatory Flexibility Act. 

Environmental Review 

The FAA has determined that this 

action qualifies for categorical exclusion 

under the National Environmental 

Policy Act in accordance with FAA 

Order 1050.1F, ‘‘Environmental 

Impacts: Policies and Procedures,’’ 

paragraph 5–6.5.a. This airspace action 

is not expected to cause any potentially 

significant environmental impacts, and 

no extraordinary circumstances exist 

that warrant preparation of an 

environmental assessment. 

Lists of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 71 

Airspace, Incorporation by reference, 

Navigation (air). 

Adoption of the Amendment 

In consideration of the foregoing, the 

Federal Aviation Administration 

amends 14 CFR part 71 as follows: 

PART 71—DESIGNATION OF CLASS A, 

B, C, D, AND E AIRSPACE AREAS; AIR 

TRAFFIC SERVICE ROUTES; AND 

REPORTING POINTS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 71 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g); 40103, 40113, 

40120; E.O. 10854, 24 FR 9565, 3 CFR, 1959– 

1963 Comp., p. 389. 

§ 71.1 [Amended] 

■ 2. The incorporation by reference in 

14 CFR 71.1 of Federal Aviation 

Administration Order 7400.11B, 

Airspace Designations and Reporting 

Points, dated August 3, 2017, effective 

September 15, 2017, is amended as 

follows: 

Paragraph 6005 Class E Airspace Areas 

Extending Upward From 700 Feet or More 

Above the Surface of the Earth. 

* * * * * 

AEA PA E5 Kane, PA [Amended] 

Kane Community Hospital Heliport, Kane, 

PA 

(Lat. 41°40′16′′ N, long. 78°49′04′′ W) 

Point in Space Coordinates 

(Lat. 41°39′58′′ N, long. 78°52′09′′ W) 

That airspace extending upward from 700 

feet above the surface within a 6-mile radius 

of the Point in Space coordinates serving 

Kane Community Hospital Heliport. 

Issued in College Park, Georgia, on January 

16, 2018. 

Ryan W. Almasy, 

Manager, Operations Support Group, Eastern 

Service Center, Air Traffic Organization. 

[FR Doc. 2018–01172 Filed 1–22–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION 

16 CFR Part 303 

RIN 3084–AB47 

Rules and Regulations Under the 

Textile Fiber Products Identification 

Act 

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission 

(‘‘FTC’’ or ‘‘Commission’’). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Commission amends the 

Rules and Regulations Under the Textile 

Fiber Products Identification Act 

(‘‘Textile Rules’’) to delete the 


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1 15 U.S.C. 70 et seq. 

2 15 U.S.C. 70b(b)(3). 

3 16 CFR 303.19. 

4See 15 U.S.C. 70b(b). 

5 82 FR 29251 (June 28, 2017). 

6American Apparel & Footwear Association 

(AAFA) (#00005); Jonathan Appelbaum (#00003); 

and De La Cruz (#00002). See https://www.ftc.gov/ 

policy/public-comments/2017/07/initiative-708. 

7AAFA, https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ 

documents/public_comments/2017/07/00005- 

141123.pdf, p. 1; Appelbaum, https://www.ftc.gov/ 

system/files/documents/public_comments/2017/07/ 

00003-141029.pdf, p. 1. 

8 De La Cruz, https://www.ftc.gov/policy/publiccomments/2017/07/06/comment-00002, p. 1. 

9As discussed below, however, although simple 

searches can determine registrants for house marks, 

it is far more difficult to determine relevant 

registrations for some word trademarks. 

10Appelbaum, p. 1. 

11 Id. 

12 De La Cruz, p. 1. 

13AAFA, p. 1. 

14For example, the USPTO has 148 registrations 

for the trademark ‘‘Acme’’ for different types of 

goods, including boat propellers (AMG Operations), 

beer (North Coast Brewing Co., Inc.), and firearm 

targets (Clifford J. Brown). Three of these 

registrations are for products covered by the Textile 

Rules: T-shirts (Acme Anvils, LLC), T-shirts (Time 

Warner Entertainment Company, L.P.), and quilts 

(Pillowtex Corp.). 

requirement that an owner of a 

registered word trademark, used as a 

house mark, furnish the FTC with a 

copy of the mark’s registration with the 

United States Patent and Trademark 

Office (‘‘USPTO’’) before using the mark 

on labels. 

DATES: Effective on February 22, 2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jock 

Chung, (202) 326–2984, Attorney, 

Division of Enforcement, Bureau of 

Consumer Protection, Federal Trade 

Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue 

NW, Washington, DC 20580. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The Textile Fiber Products 

Identification Act (‘‘Textile Act’’) 1 and 

implementing Textile Rules require 

marketers to, among other things, attach 

a label to each covered textile fiber 

product disclosing: (1) The generic 

names and percentages by weight of the 

constituent fibers in the product; (2) the 

name under which the manufacturer or 

other responsible company does 

business, i.e., the product’s marketer’s 

name,2 or other specified identifier in 

lieu of that name,3 and (3) the name of 

the country where the product was 

processed or manufactured.4 Section 

303.19(a) allows the owners of 

registered word trademarks who use 

these trademarks as house marks to 

disclose such trademarks in lieu of their 

names. However, before doing so, the 

company must file a copy of their 

USPTO registration with the 

Commission. The Commission imposed 

this requirement in 1959, presumably to 

obviate the need for the Commission to 

obtain paper copies of registrations from 

the USPTO. However, registered house 

marks now can be found by searching 

online or at the USPTO’s website 

(www.uspto.gov). 

II. Amendments to the Textile Rules 

In a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 

published on June 28, 2017,5 the 

Commission proposed amending 

Section 303.19 to: (1) Delete the 

requirement that an owner of a 

registered word trademark used as a 

house mark furnish the FTC with a copy 

of the mark’s registration with the 

USPTO before using the mark on labels, 

and (2) no longer restrict the use of such 

trademarks to only those employed as 

house marks. The Commission received 

three comments in response.6

As discussed below, based on the 

record, the Commission has determined 

to amend the Textile Rules to delete the 

requirement trademark owners furnish 

the FTC with a copy of the mark’s 

USPTO registration before using the 

mark on labels. Based on the comments 

received, however, the Commission 

declines to eliminate the provision 

allowing only trademarks used as house 

marks. 

A. Deleting the Registration Submission 

Requirement 

Comments: The AAFA and 

Appelbaum comments supported the 

Commission’s proposal to eliminate the 

requirement that businesses provide the 

Commission with a copy of a word 

trademark’s USPTO registration prior to 

using these marks. AAFA asserted that 

simplifying the Textile Rules would 

‘‘eliminate confusion, both for the 

business community and for 

consumers.’’ 7 De La Cruz, however, 

opposed this proposed amendment, 

arguing that the current Section 

303.19(a) ‘‘keeps trade in order’’ and 

‘‘discourages trademark infringement,’’ 8

but did not offer support for these 

contentions. 

Discussion: Based on the record, the 

Commission amends Section 303.19(a) 

of the Textile Rules to delete the 

requirement that an owner of a 

registered word trademark furnish the 

FTC with a copy of the mark’s 

registration with the USPTO prior to 

using the mark in lieu of a marketer’s 

name. Commenters and the 

Commission’s experience indicate that 

eliminating the submission requirement 

will reduce compliance costs for 

marketers without reducing protections 

for consumers. Specifically, the 

Commission and consumers can readily 

identify a registrant by searching for a 

marketer’s house mark on the USPTO’s 

online database or other online 

resources.9 Moreover, Commission staff 

has not consulted the files of house 

marks submitted to the Commission for 

many years, if ever, nor has it received 

requests from the public to do so. The 

Commission therefore concludes that 

the current submission requirement is 

neither necessary nor useful to enable 

the Commission or consumers to 

identify marketers of textile fiber 

products. 

B. Word Trademarks Other Than House 

Marks as Marketer Identifiers 

Comments: Commenters Appelbaum 

and De La Cruz opposed the 

Commission’s proposal to eliminate the 

provision allowing only trademarks 

used as house marks to be used in lieu 

of marketers’ names. Appelbaum 

asserted that the proposed amendment 

was premised on an assumption a word 

trademark is ‘‘unique,’’ when, in fact, 

word trademarks may be ‘‘very similar,’’ 

preventing consumers from effectively 

searching online for business owners.10

Appelbaum further noted that, in 

contrast, house marks did not present 

this problem because ‘‘a house mark is 

more uniquely associated with a 

business and less likely to be 

imitated.’’ 11 De La Cruz stated without 

further analysis that the current Section 

303.19(a) ‘‘keeps trade in order’’ and 

‘‘discourages trademark 

infringement.’’ 12 The AAFA supported 

this proposed amendment without 

explanation.13

Discussion: The Commission declines 

to amend Section 303.19(a) of the 

Textile Rules to permit the use of word 

trademarks other than house marks in 

lieu of marketers’ names. The comments 

and staff research indicate that such an 

amendment would impose new burdens 

and additional costs on consumers and 

others to identify marketers of textile 

fiber products. 

In particular, the record indicates that 

it can be difficult to find the identity of 

a specific registrant using a word 

trademark, rather than a house mark. 

Word trademarks that are not house 

marks can be registered for specific 

goods or services, and identical word 

trademarks can be registered numerous 

times for different goods or services.14

Consequently, simple searches on the 

USPTO’s online database can produce 


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3070 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 15 / Tuesday, January 23, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

15For instance, a simple search for ‘‘Acme’’ on 

the USPTO’s website currently produces 527 

registrations; a simplesearch for ‘‘Cotton’’ produces 

2,761 registrations. Similarly, searches on standard 

search engines for common word trademarks can 

produce enormous numbers of responses. Searching 

for ‘‘Acme’’ on Google returns almost 57 million 

results, with the first results referencing 

supermarkets, cartoons, packaging-supplies, pies, 

and furniture. 

16For example, to search on the USPTO website 

for only ‘‘Acme,’’ and exclude the 379 registrations 

for terms that include Acme, such as ‘‘Pro Acme,’’ 

a user must conduct a ‘‘structured’ search on the 

USPTO database and specify that the search is on 

the ‘‘FULL MARK’’ field. 

17USPTO ‘‘Trademark Manual of Examining 

Procedure April 2017’’ 1402.03(b) House Marks, 

available at https://tmep.uspto.gov/RDMS/TMEP/ 

current#/current/TMEP-1400d1e2208.html. 

18For example, a simple search on the USPTO for 

the house mark ‘‘Kirkland Signature’’ returns 138 

registrations, all owned by Costco Wholesale 

Corporation. Therefore, consumers can review any 

of the registrations and determine the house mark 

owner, even though only one of the registrations is 

for clothing. Online searches for ‘‘Kirkland 

Signature’’ also readily return references to Costco 

Wholesale Corporation. 

RN numbers also already provide a free, 

convenient alternative to names for marketers that 

do not own house marks. The Commission has 

recently revised the RN Database at https://

rn.ftc.gov/Account/BasicSearch, so consumers can 

easily identify companies from RN numbers. 

19 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. In 2015, the Commission 

published its PRA burden estimates for the current 

information collection requirements under the 

Rules. See 80 FR 1411, 1413 (Jan. 9, 2015) and 80 

FR 14387, 14388 (Mar. 19, 2015). In April 2015, 

OMB granted clearance through April 30, 2018, for 

these requirements and the associated PRA burden 

estimates. The OMB control number is 3084–0101. 20 5 U.S.C. 603–605. 21 80 FR 1411, 1413 (Jan. 9, 2015). 

hundreds or thousands of responses.15

Although sophisticated searches 

produce far fewer responses, such 

searches may require more training and 

expertise than many consumers are 

likely to possess.16 In contrast, to 

register a house mark as a trademark, 

the USPTO requires that an applicant 

indicate that it will use that house mark 

‘‘for a full line of products’’ so that 

consumers can identify a manufacturer 

or seller from that house mark.17

Therefore, it is significantly easier to 

identify a house mark owner from a 

USPTO search.18

Accordingly, the Commission will 

continue to allow only owners of 

registered word trademarks who use 

these trademarks as house marks to 

disclose such trademarks in lieu of their 

names. 

III. Paperwork Reduction Act 

The Textile Rules contain various 

‘‘collection of information’’ (e.g., 

disclosure and recordkeeping) 

requirements for which the Commission 

has obtained clearance from the Office 

of Management and Budget (‘‘OMB’’) 

under the Paperwork Reduction Act 

(‘‘PRA’’).19 The amended Textile Rules 

do not impose any additional collection 

of information requirements. 

IV. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), 

5 U.S.C. 601–612, requires that the 

Commission provide an Initial 

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) 

with a Proposed Rule, and a Final 

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (FRFA) 

with the final Rule, unless the 

Commission certifies that the Rule will 

not have a significant economic impact 

on a substantial number of small 

entities.20

The Commission anticipates that the 

final amendment will not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. In 

the Commission’s view, the amendment 

should not increase the costs of small 

entities that manufacture or import 

textile fiber products, but may reduce 

costs associated with furnishing a copy 

of a registered word trademark used as 

a house mark to the FTC. Therefore, 

based on available information, the 

Commission certifies that amending the 

Textile Rules will not have a significant 

economic impact on a substantial 

number of small businesses. Although 

the Commission certifies under the RFA 

that the amendment will not have a 

significant impact on a substantial 

number of small entities, the 

Commission has determined, 

nonetheless, that it is appropriate to 

publish a Final Regulatory Flexibility 

Analysis to inquire into the impact of 

the proposed amendment on small 

entities. Therefore, the Commission has 

prepared the following analysis: 

Although the Commission has 

certified under the RFA that the 

amendments would not have a 

significant impact on a substantial 

number of small entities, the 

Commission has determined, 

nonetheless, that it is appropriate to 

publish an FRFA in order to explain the 

impact of the amendments on small 

entities as follows: 

A. Description of the Reasons That 

Action by the Agency Is Being Taken 

The Commission is amending the 

Rules to provide greater flexibility in 

complying with the Rules’ disclosure 

requirements by permitting textile fiber 

product marketers to use registered 

house marks to identify themselves 

without sending registration copies to 

the Commission. 

B. Issues Raised by Comments in 

Response to the IRFA 

The Commission did not receive any 

comments specifically related to the 

impact of the final amendment on small 

businesses. In addition, the Commission 

did not receive any comments filed by 

the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the 

Small Business Administration. 

C. Estimate of Number of Small Entities 

To Which the Amendments Will Apply 

Under the Small Business Size 

Standards issued by the Small Business 

Administration, textile apparel 

manufacturers qualify as small 

businesses if they have 500 or fewer 

employees. Clothing wholesalers qualify 

as small business if they have 100 or 

fewer employees. The Commission’s 

staff has estimated that approximately 

22,642 textile fiber product 

manufacturers and importers are 

covered by the Textile Rules’ disclosure 

requirements.21 A substantial number of 

these entities likely qualify as small 

businesses. The Commission estimates 

that the amendment will not have a 

significant impact on small businesses 

because it does not impose any new 

obligations on them, but may reduce 

filing costs associated with the Textile 

Rules. 

D. Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping, 

and Other Compliance Requirements 

The amendment deletes a filing 

requirement, thus providing greater 

flexibility to companies covered by the 

Textile Rules. The amendment is not 

expected to increase any reporting, 

recordkeeping, or other requirements 

associated with the Textile Rules, and is 

expected to decrease reporting 

requirements. 

E. Description of Steps Taken To 

Minimize Significant Economic Impact, 

If Any, on Small Entities, Including 

Alternatives 

The Commission did not propose any 

specific small entity exemption or other 

significant alternatives because the 

amendment is expected to decrease 

reporting requirements and will not 

impose any new requirements or 

compliance costs. No comments 

identified any new compliance costs, 

and several comments argued the 

amendment will reduce compliance 

costs. 

List of Subjects in 16 CFR Part 303 

Advertising, Labeling, Recordkeeping, 

Textile fiber products. 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Commission amends part 


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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 15 / Tuesday, January 23, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 3071 

303 of title 16, Code of Federal 

Regulations, as follows: 

PART 303—RULES AND 

REGULATIONS UNDER THE TEXTILE 

FIBER PRODUCTS IDENTIFICATION 

ACT 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 303 

continues to read: 

Authority: 15 U.S.C. 70 et seq. 

■ 2. Amend § 303.19 by revising 

paragraph (a) to read as follows: 

§ 303.19 Name or other identification 

required to appear on labels. 

(a) The name required by the Act to 

be used on labels shall be the name 

under which the person is doing 

business. Where a person has a word 

trademark, used as a house mark, 

registered in the United States Patent 

Office, such word trademark may be 

used on labels in lieu of the name 

otherwise required. No trademark, trade 

names, or other names except those 

provided for above shall be used for 

required identification purposes. 

* * * * * 

By direction of the Commission. 

Donald S. Clark, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2018–01202 Filed 1–22–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6750–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 

Drug Enforcement Administration 

21 CFR Part 1301 

[Docket No. DEA–450] 

RIN 1117–AB42 

Implementation of the Provision of the 

Comprehensive Addiction and 

Recovery Act of 2016 Relating to the 

Dispensing of Narcotic Drugs for 

Opioid Use Disorder 

AGENCY: Drug Enforcement 

Administration, Department of Justice. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Comprehensive 

Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) of 

2016, which became law on July 22, 

2016, amended the Controlled 

Substances Act (CSA) to expand the 

categories of practitioners who may, 

under certain conditions on a temporary 

basis, dispense a narcotic drug in 

Schedule III, IV, or V for the purpose of 

maintenance treatment or detoxification 

treatment. Separately, the Department of 

Health and Human Services, by final 

rule effective August 8, 2016, increased 

to 275 the maximum number of patients 

that a practitioner may treat for opioid 

use disorder without being separately 

registered under the CSA for that 

purpose. The Drug Enforcement 

Administration (DEA) is hereby 

amending its regulations to incorporate 

these statutory and regulatory changes. 

DATES: Effective: January 22, 2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michael J. Lewis, Diversion Control 

Division, Drug Enforcement 

Administration; Mailing Address: 8701 

Morrissette Drive, Springfield, Virginia 

22152; Telephone: (202) 598–6812. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: It has been 

determined this is a major rule within 

the meaning of the Congressional 

Review Act (CRA). 5 U.S.C. 804(2). 

Major rules generally cannot take effect 

until 60 days after the date on which the 

rule is published in the Federal 

Register. 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(3). However, 

the CRA provides that ‘‘any rule for 

which an agency for good cause finds 

(and incorporates the finding and a brief 

statement of reasons therefor in the rule 

issued) that notice and public procedure 

thereon are impracticable, unnecessary, 

or contrary to the public interest, shall 

take effect at such time as the Federal 

agency promulgating the rule 

determines.’’ 5 U.S.C. 808. As is 

discussed below, DEA finds there is 

good cause to issue these amendments 

as a final rule without notice and 

comment, because these amendments 

merely conform the implementing 

regulations with recent amendments to 

the CSA contained in CARA that have 

already taken effect. Accordingly, DEA 

has determined this rule will take effect 

January 22, 2018. 

Background and Legal Authority 

Pertinent Provisions of the CARA 

On July 22, 2016, the President signed 

the Comprehensive Addiction and 

Recovery Act (CARA) into law as Public 

Law 114–198. Section 303 of the CARA 

amended certain provisions of 21 U.S.C. 

823(g)(2), which is the subsection of the 

Controlled Substance Act (CSA) that 

sets forth the conditions under which a 

practitioner may, without being 

separately registered under subsection 

823(g)(1), dispense a narcotic drug in 

Schedule III, IV, or V for the purpose of 

maintenance treatment or detoxification 

treatment. Maintenance treatment is the 

dispensing of a narcotic drug, in excess 

of twenty-one days, for the treatment of 

dependence upon heroin or other 

morphine-like drugs (21 U.S.C. 802(29)). 

A detoxification treatment is the term 

given when a narcotic drug is dispensed 

in decreasing doses, not exceeding one 

hundred and eighty days, ‘‘to alleviate 

adverse physiological or psychological 

effects incident to withdrawal from the 

continuous or sustained use of a 

narcotic drug,’’ with the ultimate goal of 

bringing a patient to a narcotic drug-free 

state (21 U.S.C. 802(30)). 

Specifically, section 303 of the CARA 

temporarily expands the types of 

practitioners who may dispense a 

narcotic drug in Schedule III, IV, or V 

for the purpose of maintenance 

treatment or detoxification treatment 

without being separately registered as a 

narcotic treatment program. Whereas 

prior to the CARA, only qualified 

physicians were permitted to dispense 

narcotic drugs in this manner, the 

CARA now temporarily permits certain 

nurse practitioners and physician 

assistants to qualify to do so. The CARA 

achieves this result by (1) inserting the 

term ‘‘qualifying practitioner’’ in place 

of ‘‘qualifying physician’’ in 21 U.S.C. 

823(g)(2)(B)(i) and (2) defining 

‘‘qualifying practitioner’’ to include not 

only a physician, but also (until October 

1, 2021) a ‘‘qualifying other 

practitioner,’’ which includes a nurse 

practitioner or physician assistant who 

meets certain qualifications set forth in 

paragraph 823(g)(2)(G)(iv). More 

precisely, section 303 of the CARA 

defines ‘‘qualifying other practitioner’’ 

as a nurse practitioner or physician 

assistant who satisfies each of the 

following criteria: 

(I) The nurse practitioner or physician 

assistant is licensed under State law to 

prescribe schedule III, IV, or V 

medications for the treatment of pain; 

(II) The nurse practitioner or 

physician assistant must complete not 

fewer than 24 hours of initial training. 

(III) The nurse practitioner or 

physician assistant is supervised by, or 

works in collaboration with, a 

qualifying physician, if the nurse 

practitioner or physician assistant is 

required by State law to prescribe 

medications for the treatment of opioid 

use disorder in collaboration with or 

under the supervision of a physician; 

and 

The Secretary determines in 

collaboration with, a qualifying 

physician, if the nurse practitioner or 

physician assistant is supervised by, or 

works in collaboration with, a 

qualifying physician, if the nurse 

practitioner can treat and manage 

opiate-dependent patients. The 

Secretary may, by regulation, revise the 

requirements for being qualifying other 

practitioner. 

This section of the CARA further 

provides that the Secretary of Health 

and Human Services (HHS) may, by 

regulation, revise the foregoing 


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