U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and U.S. Sens. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) are urging the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to take immediate action to protect Americans from deadly kratom and related semi-synthetic substances.
Specifically, the senators are requesting the Trump administration:
- Immediately issue the emergency scheduling order for 7-hydroxy mitragynine (7-OH).
- Permanently place all harmful substances found in kratom, including 7-OH, MGM-15, MGM-16 and mitragynine psyeudoindoxyl, into Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, meaning they have no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.
- Develop a permanent scheduling recommendation for the full kratom plant and its derivatives.
“We frequently hear from constituents and concerned parents who have lost loved ones, and recovering users who warn us constantly about the addictive nature of kratom and its analogues. We worry the availability of these products is providing consumers with a false sense of security because they are readily available and marketed as natural,” the lawmakers wrote. “It is imperative that the final emergency scheduling order for 7-OH be expeditiously promulgated.”
“We urge DEA, in consultation with FDA, to initiate proceedings to permanently schedule all harmful substances found in kratom, including 7-OH, MGM-15, MGM-16, and mitragynine pseudoindoxyl. Furthermore, we urge the Food and Drug Administration to conduct the necessary scientific and medical evaluations of these substances and provide a permanent scheduling recommendation to the Drug Enforcement Administration for the full kratom plant, its derivatives, and all levels of the semi-synthetic analogues like mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, MGM-15, and MGM-16 that are being marketed as natural products,” the lawmakers concluded.
Read the full letter HERE.
