prescription dea number
rx_dea_nbrDefinition
ISO-11179 Definition
The Drug Enforcement Administration registration number assigned to a prescriber authorized to prescribe controlled substances. Required on all Schedule II–V prescriptions.
Pharmacy & Controlled Substance Context
DEA numbers follow a specific format: 2 letters + 7 digits with a checksum. Required in pharmacy claims for controlled substances. Used for prescriber validation, fraud detection, and DEA schedule compliance auditing in PBM data systems.
Last digit is a checksum — sum of digits 1,3,5 plus 2×(sum of digits 2,4,6) → last digit of total equals digit 7.
Example Values
Common enum values for this column
AB1234563BC2345674Standard Abbreviation
rx_dea_nbr
Category
Production DDL — FACT_PHARMACY_CLAIM
CREATE OR REPLACE TABLE FACT_PHARMACY_CLAIM (
rx_clm_key INTEGER NOT NULL -- surrogate key,
rx_clm_id VARCHAR(50) NOT NULL -- pharmacy claim ID,
mbr_key INTEGER NOT NULL -- FK to DIM_MEMBER,
ndc_cd VARCHAR(11) -- national drug code,
drug_nm VARCHAR(255) -- drug name,
drug_gnrc_ind CHAR(1) -- generic indicator,
days_sply_cnt SMALLINT -- days supply count,
qty_dspnd DECIMAL(10,3) -- quantity dispensed,
rx_fill_dt DATE -- fill date,
formulary_tier SMALLINT -- formulary tier,
rx_cost_amt DECIMAL(10,2) -- total drug cost,
mbr_pay_amt DECIMAL(10,2) -- member pay amount,
plan_pay_amt DECIMAL(10,2) -- plan pay amount,
prior_auth_ind CHAR(1) -- prior auth required,
load_dt TIMESTAMP_NTZ NOT NULL -- load timestamp
);
Standard Snowflake DDL for the canonical pharmacy table. Convert to BigQuery or Databricks →
Why This Term Matters
Pharmacy data is among the most regulated and codified data in healthcare, governing controlled substances, PBM adjudication, and Medicare Part D reporting. A data engineer fluent in pharmacy terminology builds pipelines that correctly parse NDC codes, validate DEA numbers, and detect drug utilization anomalies before they reach compliance teams. Errors in pharmacy field definitions frequently trigger PBM contract disputes and CMS audit findings.
Related Content
Related Definitions
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Pharmacy DataPharmacy Data Model: Prescription & Dispensing Schema Guide
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