# *Xiulu Ruan v. United States of America*

To ensure that physicians are not convicted for merely negligent conduct, however, the federal courts generally permit doctors to advance a “good faith” defense.

December 27, 2021 • Legal Briefs 

By [Jeffrey A. Singer](https://www.cato.org/people/jeffrey-singer) 

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A physician otherwise authorized to prescribe controlled substances may be convicted of unlawful distribution under 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) if his prescriptions “fall outside the usual course of professional practice.” *United States v. Moore*, 423 U.S. 122, 124 (1975). To ensure that physicians are not convicted for merely negligent conduct, however, the federal courts generally permit doctors to advance a “good faith” defense.

The question presented, on which the circuits are deeply divided, is whether a physician alleged to have prescribed controlled substances outside the usual course of professional practice may be convicted under Section 841(a)(1) without regard to whether, in good faith, he “reasonably believed” or “subjectively intended” that his prescriptions fall within that course of professional practice.

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##### *Xiulu Ruan v. United States of America* 

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##### About the Author 

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##### [Jeffrey A. Singer](/people/jeffrey-singer)

Senior Fellow, Cato Institute

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