Understanding OSHA Interpretation Letters, and Why One of the 2025 Letters May Apply to You
Every year, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) receives thousands of questions from employers, safety professionals, trade groups, and workers who need clarification on how specific regulations apply in real-world situations. Because OSHA standards can’t cover every scenario, the agency issues Interpretation Letters, official written explanations of how OSHA understands and enforces particular rules.
Welcome to 2026! Let’s Take A Look Back at OSHA’s Top 5 Most Frequently Cited Standards in 2025
As 2026 opens its doors, it’s the perfect opportunity for employers, including veterinary practices, hospitals, mobile units, and mixed-use facilities, to reflect on safety performance and evaluate compliance readiness. Each year, OSHA releases its list of the Most Frequently Cited Standards, highlighting not only where regulatory risk is highest but also where workers are most frequently injured.
As 2025 Comes to an End, Let’s Take A Look Back at the Most Frequently Cited DEA Compliance Issues
As 2025 wraps up, it’s a perfect time for DEA registrants, especially those in veterinary medicine, to reflect on recordkeeping practices, storage procedures, and overall controlled-substance compliance. Unlike OSHA, the DEA does not publish an annual “Top 10” violation list, but inspection trends consistently reveal the same weak points year after year.
Don’tToss Those Records Yet!
Across the United States, veterinary practices struggle with one of the most overlooked, but most dangerous, compliance challenges: record retention. Every practice knows they must keep records… but for how long?
Evacuation Plans, What Every Workplace Needs To Know
In the event of an emergency, the most important thing isn’t equipment, records, or inventory, it’s lives. Having a clear, well-communicated, and regularly practiced evacuation plan can make the difference between chaos and calm, injury and safety. While emergencies may feel unlikely, events like fires, explosions, natural disasters, chemical leaks, and even active threats can happen anywhere, at any time.
Why Self-Inspections Are a Non-Negotiable for DEA Compliance in Medical Facilities
In the high-stakes world of human and veterinary medical care, the focus is naturally on patient safety and outcomes. But behind the scenes, compliance and recordkeeping are equally critical – especially when it comes to handling controlled substances. One area that’s often overlooked, yet incredibly powerful in avoiding costly violations and operational disruptions, is the […]
Regulatory Readiness – Why Tribal Knowledge Isn’t Enough
In many veterinary clinics and smaller human healthcare practices, regulatory compliance isn’t always someone’s full-time job. More often than not, the responsibility of managing DEA, OSHA, or state specific regulations gets handed off as a secondary duty, given to the most organized person in the building, or the one who’s “done it before.” While this […]
When the DEA Registrant Changes – Why a Handshake Isn’t Enough
In the world of veterinary medicine, transitions happen. Doctors retire, move to different facilities, or shift roles. But when that individual holds the DEA registration used to order and manage controlled substances, the changeover is not business as usual – and certainly not as simple as handing over a clipboard and saying “good luck.” Let’s […]
Thefts and Significant Losses of Controlled Substances – Understanding Federal and State Reporting Requirements
Controlled substances are tightly regulated for a reason, they carry high potential for abuse, diversion, and misuse. When a theft or significant loss occurs, the risk to public health and facility liability increases significantly. That’s why both the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and individual state authorities have stringent requirements for how registrants must respond when controlled substances go missing.
DEA Administrative Hearing Delays – What Registrants Need to Know and How to Prepare
Last week, federal registrants awaiting decisions on show cause orders, license suspensions, or denial appeals received troubling news: Chief Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) John J. Mulrooney, II announced his retirement effective August 1, 2025. With his departure, the DEA’s Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ) will have no available ALJs to preside over pending cases. As a result, all hearings have been postponed indefinitely.