They’re not just coming for kratom. They’re coming for anything that gives people an alternative to the system. Kratom. Kava. Marijuana. If it isn’t alcohol, Big Pharma, or something they can patent and control, they call it “dangerous.” Advocates for all of these need to stand together. news.virginia.edu/content/he…

Ohio Ag Dept Faces Lawsuit Over Kratom Claims #shorts youtube.com/shorts/EN8PLMu2Z… via @YouTube

Give comments! Kratom Consumer Advocates are strongly encouraged to respond to Health & Human Services Request for Comment on Chronic Disease of Addiction protectkratom.org/comment

📝 Federal Comment Opportunity: HHS Request for Comment Kratom Consumer Advocates are also strongly encouraged to respond to the Health & Human Services Request for Comment on the Chronic Disease of Addiction. This is an important opportunity to share your perspective, your experience, and why kratom policy should be based on science, consumer safety, and real-world outcomes — not fear or misinformation. Submit your comment here: protectkratom.org/comment Your personal story can help federal officials better understand why natural kratom access matters and why responsible regulation is the right path forward.

Constituent advocacy is the key to ensuring safe, continued access to natural kratom leaf products. Local councils and state legislatures are discussing proposed regulations across the country. We need your help to educate law makers and bring forward the lived experience of natural kratom leaf consumers in your state or localities. Sign up for updates by clicking the link: bit.ly/4us0Zu6

Email your kratom testimonies!

🚨 OHIO KRATOM ADVOCATES: ACTION NEEDED IMMEDIATELY 🚨 🚨 OHIO KRATOM ADVOCATES: ACTION NEEDED 🚨 I attended today's Ohio Board of Pharmacy meeting (online in the public broadcast). The Board appears to be moving forward with the proposed rule to schedule natural kratom and advance it through the rulemaking process. This does not mean the rule is final, but it does mean the Board is continuing to pursue scheduling rather than withdrawing it. Now is the time to stay involved, stay informed and act. Contact lawmakers, spread awareness, and encourage others to get involved. The most important thing advocates can do right now is urge lawmakers to advance the Kratom Consumer Protection Act (SB 299 and HB 587) as an alternative to scheduling. This is bad news but it's not over. There is still hope. We need to show as much public interest in the KCPA bills as possible to get them moving. We can fight this together! 📢 KEY CONTACTS FOR OHIO ADVOCATES Please contact the lawmakers below and urge them to advance the Kratom Consumer Protection Act (SB 299 and HB 587) and support regulation rather than prohibition. Senator Louis Blessing (SB 299 Sponsor) louis.blessing@ohiosenate.gov (614) 466-8068 Senator Kristina Roegner (Chair, Senate General Government Committee) kristina.roegner@ohiosenate.gov (614) 466-4823 Senator Theresa Gavarone (Vice Chair, Senate General Government Committee) theresa.gavarone@ohiosenate.gov (614) 466-8060 Representative Mike Odioso (HB 587 Sponsor) rep69@ohiohouse.gov (614) 466-3288 Representative Brian Lorenz (HB 587 Sponsor) rep60@ohiohouse.gov (614) 644-6711 @LBlessing308 @kristinaroegner @tgavarone @SteveHuffmanOH @BillReineke @JaneTimken @Rob_McColley @TheKratomAssn @kratomscience @TeamKratom @KratomTimes @MikeOdioso @lorenzforohio @Kpascuch @misteaz79 @TauntonKratom @KratomGuyShow @OhioSenate #Kratom #KeepKratomLegal #ProtectKratom #KCPA #OhioKratom #SB299 #AmericanKratomAssociation #KratomAdvocacy #KratomSavesLives #VeteransForKratom #ConsumersForKratom #OhioPolitics #OhioLegislature #NaturalKratom #BotanicalFreedom

ATTENTION OHIO ADVOCATES: Ohio Board of Pharmacy to Discuss Rule to Make Natural Kratom Schedule One Tomorrow! 📢PLEASE PAY ATTENTION OHIO ADVOCATES📢 The Ohio Board of Pharmacy has placed Rule 4729:9-1-01.2 (Mitragynine) on the June 8-9 Board agenda under the Rules section. This is the rule associated with scheduling natural kratom in Ohio. While we do not yet know exactly what action the Board intends to take, the fact that this rule is being discussed should be taken seriously. Many Ohioans believed the issue of natural kratom had been separated from the Board's previous actions. The Board previously clarified that its May 19 action was not intended to schedule natural kratom. Now, Rule 4729:9-1-01.2 has returned to the Board agenda, raising important questions about what comes next. There are several reasons why Ohioans may wish to pay close attention: • There is ongoing litigation and a Temporary Restraining Order involving the Board's kratom-related actions. • Two Kratom Consumer Protection Act (KCPA) bills remain in committee. These bills represent a regulatory approach focused on age restrictions, testing requirements, labeling standards, and consumer protections rather than prohibition. • National discussion surrounding kratom continues to evolve. Recent congressional testimony challenged some of the claims that have historically been used to justify scheduling efforts, including testimony that challenged claims surrounding a reported kratom-related death in Ohio. • The American Kratom Association and other advocates have spent years promoting regulation rather than prohibition and have been active in Ohio policy discussions. • If the Board advances the rule through the normal rulemaking process, additional review steps remain. Ohio's Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review (JCARR) exists specifically to review agency rules and determine whether agencies have acted within their legal authority and followed required procedures. • Businesses, consumers, veterans, chronic pain patients, and other stakeholders may continue to raise concerns regarding the impact of scheduling natural kratom. • There have also been recent discussions at the federal level suggesting that some policymakers are considering regulatory approaches rather than outright prohibition of naturally derived products. "...approving natural 7-OH..." I personally believe that moving forward with a ban on natural kratom would be scientifically unfounded and oppressive to responsible adults who use natural kratom to sustain well-being and quality of life. To make this herb in the coffee family a schedule 1 drug would ignore years of advocacy for a regulatory approach instead of prohibition. Ohio Board of Pharmacy Meeting Agenda: pharmacy.ohio.gov/documents/… Now is the time for Ohio consumers, businesses, veterans, advocates, and policymakers to pay attention to what is happening with kratom legislation in Ohio. I know Ohio advocates will fight this tooth and nail. Let's see change for the entire nation starting here!

Please watch and share youtu.be/cP6LLkYWNIw?si=NsSl…

- Kratom: ~5,200 detections ("involved") in CDC SUDORS data across partial jurisdictions (32–43 states) 2020–2024. Most cases are polysubstance—fentanyl/opioids present in the vast majority. Pure kratom deaths are rare (earlier data: only ~7 of 152). - Crack/cocaine: 3,466–6,057 cocaine-related deaths reported in just 25 major metro areas 1983–1988 (JAMA 1991, DAWN vs vital stats). National totals were low thousands/year at peak; total U.S. drug overdoses then were ~6k–10k annually vs ~80k–110k today. "Linked to" = detected on tox, not primary cause. 1980s testing was spotty. Crack epidemic brought massive violence/addiction in cities. Kratom deaths remain a tiny share of current overdoses and are overwhelmingly tied to other drugs. The stat cherry-picks scope and ignores causation/context. Kratom carries risks (dependence, especially extracts), but equating it to crack ignores the data.

The claim misleads by cherry-picking scopes. Kratom was detected in ~5,200 US overdose deaths 2020-2024 (CDC SUDORS, rising jurisdictions; vast majority polysubstance with opioids/fentanyl—pure kratom deaths rare). Crack figures (3.5k–6k) cover only 25 metro areas 1983-1988 (JAMA 1991 on DAWN vs vital stats gaps), not national. Cocaine OD deaths were lower then than now, but the epidemic's core harms were violence, addiction & urban decay—not raw OD counts like today's 100k /yr crisis. "Linked to" ≠ caused. Different eras, reporting, & contexts. Kratom isn't crack.

Kevin Sabet’s claim doesn’t check out. Cocaine deaths (DAWN data) hit 717 in 1985 and climbed past 2,000 by 1988 as crack spread. Kratom-involved overdose deaths are much lower: CDC counted 91 in 27 states over 18 months (2016-17), with only 7 listed as kratom alone. Poison centers logged 233 associated deaths across 11 years (2015-2025), mostly polysubstance. Kratom has caused deaths—rarely as the sole factor—but the scale is nowhere near mid-80s crack.

Retired from the Navy due to injuries and a rare movement disorder, life felt bleak on 25 medications. A doctor's brave decision to explore natural options offered a new path, moving away from a zombie-like state and addressing the underlying mental and neurological struggles.

For years, some of kratom's loudest critics have argued that natural kratom should be banned outright. They have portrayed kratom as having no legitimate scientific future, no therapeutic potential, and no place in a regulated marketplace. This week, reality delivered a very different message. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has allowed an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for mitragynine—the primary alkaloid found in kratom—to take effect, clearing the way for a human clinical trial evaluating its potential role in treating opioid use disorder. (National Institutes of Health (NIH)) Think about that for a moment. While some activists continue demanding blanket prohibition of natural kratom products, federal scientists at NIH and FDA reviewed the available preclinical data and determined there was sufficient evidence to justify human clinical investigation. (National Institutes of Health (NIH)) No, this does not mean mitragynine has been proven safe or effective. What it does mean is that the nation's leading scientific institutions concluded the compound warrants serious study—not dismissal. (National Institutes of Health (NIH)) The irony is difficult to ignore. The same people celebrating every attempted kratom ban are now finding themselves on the opposite side of the National Institutes of Health, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, leading academic researchers, and an FDA-reviewed drug development program. (National Institutes of Health (NIH)) The lesson here is simple: Science should drive policy. If a compound is worthy of NIH-funded research, FDA-reviewed drug development, and human clinical trials, then serious people should be demanding more research, more data, more quality standards, and more responsible regulation—not less. (National Institutes of Health (NIH)) I have long supported strong regulations, GMP manufacturing, age restrictions, adverse event reporting, and rigorous scientific evaluation. What I do not support is allowing ideology to replace evidence. The future of kratom should be determined by data, toxicology, pharmacology, clinical outcomes, and regulatory science. Not by the loudest voices on social media. #Kratom #NIH #FDA #Science #PublicHealth #OpioidCrisis #Research #EvidenceBasedPolicy #DietarySupplements #Regulation @DeanFrancis22

Another one. The 7-OH cultists will say it’s fake.

Let’s look at the KDA’s drug of choice: Alcohol