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MARIJUANA MOMENT
TOP FEDERAL HEALTH OFFICIAL AND FORMER WHITE HOUSE DRUG CZAR BRIEF CONGRESS ON
KRATOM AS ADVOCATES PUSH FOR BIPARTISAN REFORM BILL
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POLITICS
TOP FEDERAL HEALTH OFFICIAL AND FORMER WHITE HOUSE DRUG CZAR BRIEF CONGRESS ON
KRATOM AS ADVOCATES PUSH FOR BIPARTISAN REFORM BILL
Published
1 day ago
on
December 19, 2023
By
Kyle Jaeger
A top federal health official and a former White House drug czar were among the
featured speakers at a recent kratom-focused congressional briefing, laying out
research priorities for the plant and broadly promoting alternative approaches
to drug criminalization.
Last week’s event, organized by the American Kratom Association (AKA), was meant
to give a science-based overview of kratom issues for congressional staff and
stakeholders as bipartisan lawmakers work to advance a bill to federally
regulate the substance, which is currently unscheduled and anecdotally used for
pain relief, curbing withdrawal symptoms and other purposes.
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Director Nora Volkow started by saying
that while she always wants policy to be grounded in science, she’s come to
understand that data is “not necessarily sufficient or enough.”
In the case of kratom, she said, “unfortunately, we don’t know much,” which is
why NIDA is committed to expanding research into its potential risks and
benefits. For example, she said health agencies have “invested significant
resources” to synthesize the main compound of kratom so that researchers can
conduct clinical trials investigating how it can be used for pain management and
also “for the treatment of drug addiction.”
“We actually are very much open” to identifying those possible benefits, she
said at the event. Volkow added, however, that the current lack of empirical
data means there’s “no way of quantifying how to properly see the value.”
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) hosted a meeting last year to explore
the therapeutic potential of the “controversial tree,” with an expert similarly
providing an overview of the science of kratom and what role it could play in
mitigating the overdose crisis.
Former Rep. Matt Salmon (R-AZ), who now serves as chairman of AKA, said at
Wednesday’s briefing that he first learned about kratom during his last term in
Congress, and he recalled how he eventually led a bipartisan letter to the Food
and Drug Administration (FDA) to “get them to rethink their position” on
scheduling kratom.
“I’m really thankful that, once they actually relied on science rather than
emotion, that they’ve never tried to schedule it again,” he said. “But the fact
is that there’s a lot of information out there—and I will say this point blank,
most of it is misinformation.”
He talked about his own personal experience using kratom as an opioid
alternative after he had knee replacement surgery, saying he used the
plant-based medicine for about a month post-operation and he “didn’t have a lick
of trouble not using it anymore” after that point.
Jim Carroll, who served as director of the Office of National Drug Control
Policy (ONDCP) under President Donald Trump from 2018 to 2021, also participated
in the briefing. Like Salmon, he said he became aware of FDA’s intent to
schedule kratom and questioned what he described as a “one-sided” rationale,
ultimately prompting him and other federal health officials to intervene.
He said that FDA was trying to get the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to
“criminalize kratom” based on its argument that the plant was linked to overdose
deaths, without providing an alternative perspective.
“So we did not have [the order] signed. We made sure that it was withdrawn,”
Carroll said. “What we did really, as far as I am concerned, is took away the
criminalization of research and the criminalization of treatment.”
The former drug czar made clear he isn’t personally advocating for the kratom
cause; rather, he wants to contribute to the conversation about the harms of
policies criminalizing drugs and substance misuse more broadly.
“If we’ve learned and we’ve all grown and realized that addiction is not a
criminal event—that we’ve stopped criminalizing addiction—why are we going to
criminalize research? Why are we going to criminalize treatment when it shows
great potential?” he asked. “And I think that’s how we need to approach this
issue, not only as Congress but also as families and as individuals and stop the
stigma. I’m convinced that’s part of what’s going on here: It’s a continuation
of this stigma.”
Mac Haddow, senior fellow on public policy at AKA, told Marijuana Moment that
one of the challenges of informing lawmakers and congressional staff about
kratom-related issues is lingering “chatter” from FDA officials who
“persistently say that kratom is dangerous.”
“We thought it was important for those staffers and members to have an
opportunity to hear from scientists and policymakers who have firsthand
knowledge and understanding of kratom and how it can help,” he said. “It was a
great step forward.”
Haddow said that the hope is this briefing will be instructive to lawmakers as
advocates push to advance a bipartisan bill—the Kratom Consumer Protection Act,
which was filed by Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Mike Lee (R-UT), as well as
Reps. Mark Pocan (D-WI) and Jack Bergman (R-MI), in October.
If the bill becomes law, it would require FDA to take further steps to evaluate
the health and safety of kratom and would also prohibit the agency from
regulating kratom products in a way that’s more restrictive than regulations for
food or dietary supplements.
Soren Shade, founder of the Colorado-based kratom company Top Tree Herbs who
attended the congressional briefing, told Marijuana Moment that “this is an
important bill to pass in order to help disseminate good information and help
protect the supply of kratom for consumers, many of whom count on it, and
getting rid of it would be a disaster and cause a lot of suffering.”
“In regards to the bare minimum goal of ensuring that a safe, clean and reliable
supply of this wonderful leaf is available for the long-term, I think this bill
is a good first step for that. I think there’s a lot of work to be done,” Shade,
who was among many kratom stakeholders visiting D.C. to set meetings with
congressional offices to advocate for reform, said.
There’s an open question as to why FDA has evidently targeted kratom, but
stakeholders say it could also explain why it placed an import alert for
products coming from countries like Indonesia. In a meeting with President Joe
Biden last month, the president of Indonesia reportedly urged the administration
to lift the alert. A top Indonesian administrative official separately made the
request to FDA earlier this year, pledging to see to it that exported products
meet safety requirements.
Meanwhile, after failing to secure the scheduling of kratom, FDA solicited
public input in 2021 as it prepared to submit the U.S. perspective on a
potential international kratom ban that never materialized. The United Nations
World Health Organization (WHO) decided in 2021 not to recommend that kratom be
globally prohibited.
While the decision was based on a scientific review of the risk of dependence,
abuse potential and therapeutic applications of kratom, advocates touted the
fact that about 80,000 people submitted comments to the panel, sharing their
perspectives and experiences with the plant-derived substance.
—
Marijuana Moment is tracking more than 1,000 cannabis, psychedelics and drug
policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters
pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and
hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.
Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to
get access.
—
In July, meanwhile, the American Medical Association, in adopting a new slate of
drug policy positions, said that people “who are using kratom only for personal
use should not face criminal consequences.” The group added, however, that the
substance should be evaluated by authorities “for its appropriateness for sale
and potential oversight via the Controlled Substances Act, before it can be
marketed, purchased, or prescribed.”
In 2020, the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) asked the
public to help identify research that specifically looks at the risks and
benefits of cannabinoids and kratom.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2020 separately received
more than one thousand comments concerning kratom as part of another public
solicitation.
Critics have said FDA misstated the facts on kratom to overstate its health
risks, for example by failing to distinguish between health hazards associated
with kratom itself and those caused by adulterants found in unregulated kratom
products.
> DNC Chairman Cites Biden’s Mass Marijuana Pardon As Example Of How The
> President Has Delivered For Black Voters
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia/ThorPorre.
Marijuana Moment is made possible with support from readers. If you rely on our
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Related Topics:
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Kyle Jaeger
Kyle Jaeger is Marijuana Moment's Sacramento-based managing editor. His work has
also appeared in High Times, VICE and attn.
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