Current Events

California Dept of Public Health Seizes Kratom Despite Lack of Prohibition Laws

Last week, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) announced it has seized $5 million worth of kratom and 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) products, despite no law explicitly prohibiting kratom and 7-OH in the state. Grant Boyken of CDPH told SFGATE the products were placed under embargo “pending further regulatory actions”. Boyken cited California’s Sherman Food, Drug, …

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Attorneys Target Kratom Companies With Growing Number of Lawsuits

Throughout the 2020s, consumers of kratom products have been suing vendors for both wrongful death and deceptive marketing, including failure to disclose risks on packaging that resulted in adverse health outcomes. Recently, Rusty Webb, a personal injury lawyer from West Virginia, announced in media outlets that these lawsuits are about to ramp up. “I, along …

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Florida to Confiscate All Kratom with 7-OH Not Listed in Parts Per Million on Package

On September 18m Florida Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson announced a new rule enacted by the state of Florida: the amount of 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) in all kratom products must be expressed on the package in parts per million (ppm). Last week, Simpson tweeted that the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) has been removing …

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7-OH Not Primary Cause of LA County Deaths Despite Headlines

Last week’s news was filled with reports of three deaths in Los Angeles County attributed to 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) overdose. The Global Kratom Coalition, a lobbying group that supports 7-OH prohibition that is sponsored in part by kratom vendors, tweeted, “The alarm has been sounded on concentrated synthetic 7-OH opioid products. This tragedy in LA County …

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Florida Seizes Leaf Kratom and Kratom Extracts in 7-OH Sweep

On August 13, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced that 7-hydroxymitragynine would immediately become a Schedule I substance under an emergency rule. “Due to the danger posed to the public, Florida is taking 7-OH off the shelves immediately,” he announced. On September 8, Florida’s Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson announced on X that the Florida Department …

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Florida Officials Cite Bodily Autonomy on Vaccines, Not 7-OH

Florida is now enforcing its ban on 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH), following an emergency rule by the attorney general classifying 7-OH as a Schedule I substance. Since August 14, 2025, any product containing more than 400 parts per million of 7-OH is now just as illegal as heroin and fentanyl analogs. Florida’s Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson announced …

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Toledo Ohio Debates Kratom Ban and Push for State Ban

Just two days after the FDA announced plans to recommend that the DEA schedule 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) as a controlled substance, on July 31, council members in Toledo, Ohio announced a possible ban on all of kratom, as well as legislation that would urge the state to ban as well. The ban in Toledo would only …

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