Missouri for Kratom

The invites all to watch NIH Integrative Medicine Research Lecture Series next monday April 25th at 1pm est

nccih.nih.gov/news/events/can-a-controversial-tree-help-end-the-opioid-crisis

from the NIH site:
"Dr. Christopher McCurdy, a medicinal chemist and behavioral pharmacologist at the University of Florida (UF), will give a virtual lecture, “Can a Controversial Tree Help End the Opioid Crisis?,” on Monday, Apr. 25 from 1 to 2 p.m. ET. The event is part of NCCIH’s Integrative Medicine Research Lecture Series.

Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa Korth) is a tree in the coffee family that is indigenous to Southeast Asia. Its leaves are the source of a Thai traditional drug, kratom, with unique pharmacologic actions—e.g., both stimulant actions and depressant ones. Kratom has been used traditionally in its region of origin as an opioid substitute and a treatment for addiction. Little was known scientifically, however, about this plant.

Recently, human case reports have increased in the literature from its use in the United States, and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has listed kratom as a “drug and chemical of concern.”

McCurdy will discuss the traditional medicinal use of this botanical, examples of current pharmacologic studies and his team’s studies in rodent models. Kratom’s differing uses, availability and preparation around the world will also be explored. The potential of kratom and its major alkaloid, mitragynine, to treat opioid withdrawal is a key focus.

McCurdy is the Frank A. Duckworth eminent scholar chair in drug research and development and a professor of medical chemistry at UF, and the director of the UF Translational Drug Development Core. His research focuses on the design, synthesis and development of drugs to treat pain and drug abuse. McCurdy holds a Ph.D. in medicinal chemistry from the University of Georgia.

No registration is required for the lecture and all interested persons are welcome. The event will be streamed live and archived on NIH VideoCast and NCCIH Facebook. "

nccih.nih.gov

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

Update on Nevada and Tennessee This is "Update on Nevada and Tennessee" by American Kratom Association on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

Legislative Update

Historic Win for Kratom Advocates
Great News out of Nevada:
The Nevada Board of Pharmacy has decided to pull the hearing on kratom from their agenda after a torrent of comments from the kratom community, and legal measures pursued by the AKA to question their processes.
This is a tremendous victory for kratom protection in Nevada and across America.
The BOP in Nevada can't bring it back for scheduling consideration this year, and the AKA will closely monitor the situation for future bans as obviously kratom's opponents are still active.
Thank you to everyone who commented and was planning on coming to Vegas. We will not be holding the events on the 13th and 14th in Vegas now since the public hearing has been called off.
The response from the kratom community has been tremendous and really made the difference. There are still BOP staff who oppose kratom legality, but the outpouring from the AKA legislative team and kratom protectors made them change their mind on proceeding with trying to criminalize kratom.
Although this means changing plans for next week for all those planning on attending the events, this is ultimately a huge victory (and many may still want to go to Las Vegas next week to celebrate.)

Additionally, great news out of Tennessee: Chairman of the Tennessee Senate Judiciary Committee has decided he will not support the amendment to his bill, SB 1997, that would ban kratom. Senator Bell has advised that no testimony will be needed from advocates given his decision.

The Tennessee House bill to ban kratom remains alive, but will not be subject to any action today. It is currently held pending a review of the costs of enforcing the ban, and the economic impacts on the state of Tennessee.

Colorado Senate Passes KCPA
The AKA legislative team and Colorado kratom community has been working extremely hard over several years in Colorado to pass a very strong and consumer focused Kratom Consumer Protection Act. So we're incredibly encouraged to have it pass the Senate today 32-2.
The bill will now go to the Colorado House for consideration. Thank you to all kratom advocates who have worked hard to support this legislation, and the AKA is committed to keep working towards passage in the House and signature by the Governor.

The AKA legislative team and Colorado kratom community has been working extremely hard over several years in Colorado to pass a very strong and consumer focused Kratom Consumer Protection Act. So we're incredibly encouraged to have it pass the Senate today 32-2.

The bill will now go to the Colorado House for consideration. Thank you to all kratom advocates who have worked hard to support this legislation, and the AKA is committed to keep working towards passage in the House and signature by the Governor.

Thanks to our own Dijon Evans for finding this article:

NIDA Selects New INVEST Fellows | National Institute on Drug Abuse NIDA has selected postdoctoral researchers from Germany and Thailand to receive INVEST Drug Abuse Research Fellowships:

Fellow Kratom Warriors:
I am writing to ask for your help – and believe me, we need that help right away.
Last night, I was sitting in the Atlanta Airport when I learned my connecting flight home was canceled so I was going to have to spend the night in the airport.
So, I opened my laptop to check emails and I saw the following messages from an off-the-wall anti-kratom zealot.
Sorry for the graphic language, but it was hers, not mine. I was personally overwhelmed with a sense of frustration and helplessness.
It’s not just that this kind of vicious attack is unfair and repulsive, it is the same kind of message that is being sent to state legislators who sponsor the Kratom Consumer Protection Act (KCPA) across the country.
These hateful messages are having an impact on our fight to protect kratom, and that is why I am writing for your help.
But trust me, this is just the tip of the iceberg. I had just left meetings with the sponsor of a kratom ban in Kentucky and everything he knew about kratom was from the talking points of the FDA.
Bans have now been proposed in New Jersey, Mississippi, Washington, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania. The Nevada Board of Pharmacy and the Alaska Board also have pending ban recommendations.
And just yesterday a new ban was introduced in West Virginia. Anti-kratom forces are trying their very best to divide and conquer us.
In Wisconsin, the bill to repeal the current ban and replace it with the KCPA was passed on a 9-2 vote of the State Affairs Committee and is supposed to be up for a vote on the House Floor sometime this coming week.
Four law enforcement agencies in Wisconsin sent a letter to the Legislature that was full of distortions, deliberately twisted facts, and outright lies. The letter claims, among other lies, that:
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) agrees with the FDA that kratom should be scheduled – THAT IS NOT TRUE AND THEY KNOW IT!
Kratom use has been linked to psychic episodes, overdose deaths, and abuse of other drugs – THAT IS COMPLETELY UNTRUE!
The FDA notes that kratom “affect the same opioid brain receptors as morphine, appears to have properties that expose users to the risks of addiction, abuse, and dependence” – THAT IS A DISTORTION OF THE TRUTH AND BASED ON OUTDATED RESEARCH!
WE HAVE TO FIGHT BACK – AND WE NEED YOUR HELP TO DO THAT!!
The really good news is that when we can get in front of legislators – including sponsors of kratom bans – we can persuade them to drop the bans and, in many cases, switch to sponsoring the KCPA.
But the key is getting in front to them. That takes a lot of time and money, and that’s where we desperately need your help.
Will you please dig as deep as you can and send a contribution – NO, I am going to call it an investment – so we can keep kratom legal?
Click to donate to make your INVESTMENT IN KRATOM’S FUTURE:
I’m sorry for having to reach out to ask for your help, but we need as much help as you can give.
With your help, we will win this fight.
Please send your most generous contribution that you can afford.
I AM NO MONSTER, AND NEITHER ARE YOU!
And I will fight to protect the right of my grandchildren – and all of your family – to purchase safe kratom products.
Thank you,
Mac
Senior Fellow on Public Policy
American Kratom Association

Donate The American Kratom Association is committed to preserve and protect the freedom of kratom consumers

Legislative Update
Our Chance to Make History: Wisconsin Could be First State to Overturn a State Kratom Ban
The Wisconsin Assembly is considering Bill 599 to replace their state kratom ban with the Kratom Consumer Protection Act. This would mean so much to Wisconsin residents and set an immensely important precedent.
We need to call Wisconsin Representatives and tell them to support AB599 and the KCPA. If you live in Wisconsin use the link below to get the phone number and call today!
If you know someone who lives in Wisconsin please share the site www.protectkratom.org/wisconsin with them and encourage them to call today!
Kratom opponents, including certain law enforcement groups, are spreading misinformation about kratom so we need to get our stories to them ASAP!
KENTUCKY BAN BILL UPDATE
The American Kratom Association Senior Fellow on Public Policy, Mac Haddow, and former New York State Senator David Carlucci spent two days working with members of the Kentucky Legislature to educate them on the value of the Kratom Consumer Protection Act as an alternative to the proposed Kratom Ban, HB 142, sponsored by Representative Josh Calloway.
"Representative Calloway was fair, willing to learn, and as committed as the AKA is in protecting consumers from dangerously adulterated kratom products,” Mac Haddow reported. “We have an agreement with Representative Calloway that he will work with the House Health Committee Chair and members of the Committee to examine how the KCPA can better serve the people of Kentucky than a complete ban on kratom.”
Former Senator Carlucci confirmed that there was not broad support for a kratom ban among the legislators they met with, and all were willing to look at the KCPA as the appropriate way to ensure kratom remains legal while protecting unsuspecting consumers from bad-actor kratom vendors who spike their products with dangerous drugs to spike sales.
Kentucky kratom advocates are encouraged to send a thank you message to Representative Calloway at [email protected] and tell him how grateful we are for his willingness to consider supporting the KCPA in Kentucky.
MISSISSIPPI
Mississippi passed a ban bill in their House of Representatives, and we're working hard to stop it in the Senate before it becomes a full ban. However we need your help by contacting Mississippi Senators.
Click the link above to add your story. Share www.Protectkratom.org/mississippi with others so we can maximize our voice.

Mississippi KCPA — Protect Kratom Help stop bans in Mississippi and enact the KCPA

https://vimeo.com/671184602

January 2022 State Update Webinar This is "January 2022 State Update Webinar" by American Kratom Association on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

WEBINAR - January 27th, 9pm EST

The AKA is working hard in states across America to pass Kratom Consumer Protection Acts and stop bans like those in Kentucky and Washington State.
Join us this Thursday for our comprehensive state legislative update webinar on kratom in your state, ask questions, and find out how to protect kratom in America!

Register today:

Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: Legislative Update. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar. Join and get the latest on KCPA progress in your state, and proposed bans in Kentucky and Washington State, and others!

Florida KCPA Update

I had the honor of testifying before the Florida Senate Committee on Commerce & Tourism on SB 1076, the Kratom Consumer Protection Act, on Tuesday, January 18. Prior to the Hearing we had the opportunity to share the kratom story with a number of members, and the Committee voted unanimously to pass the KCPA with a favorable recommendation.
There are two more Committee Hearings on the Senate side before the KCPA goes to the House, but this was an outstanding start in getting needed consumer protections for kratom consumers in Florida. Thanks to all the Kratom Protectors who are working hard to support the KCPA.


-Mac Haddow

Here's the post...

Attention American Kratom Protectors
As you likely have seen, kratom ban bills are increasing. The AKA is working hard to stop statewide bans in Kentucky, Washington State, and in localities and cities across America.

We must work together to defeat these bills! Thank you to those who are donating and sharing their personal testimonials.

Reminder: We should never personally attack legislators or elected officials. Many elected officials have only heard negative things about kratom from the FDA or elsewhere, and are responsive when we reach out with science and consumer testimonials.

No one should ever email, message, post, or otherwise communicate attacks or threats to legislators and elected officials. We understand kratom bans are an emotional issue, but attacks and name calling against the legislators or officials themselves is wrong and damages our efforts to stop bans.

Personal stories, no matter how short, about how kratom has helped you or a loved one are incredibly powerful. Thank you to everyone who has shared their story and appropriately communicated to officials.

A BILL TO BAN KRATOM WAS FILED IN KENTUCKY ON JANUARY 4. TINYURL.COM/RSKYHB142

THEN ANOTHER BAN KRATOM BILL IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON ON JANUARY 11.
TINYURL.COM/WASB5743

Your help is needed more than ever to stop these bans and others. We've assembled teams to stop the bans and help pass the Kratom Consumer Protection Act, and will be reaching out to American Kratom Protectors about appropriate targeted communications.

We have to get the truth about kratom in front of officials in states from Florida and Kentucky to Washington State and California.

Together we stopped the WHO International Ban and we're making great KCPA progress in many states, but we cannot do it without your help!

WISCONSIN UPDATE

The Wisconsin House State Affairs Committee voted 9-2 earlier this month to replace the current kratom ban in Wisconsin with the Kratom Consumer Protection Act (Assembly Bill 599). This is a very important step in correcting the mistake made when Wisconsin policy makers believed the FDA’s anti-kratom attacks.

We will need your support to contact the Wisconsin House members when AB 599 is up for a vote (and Senate members after that vote). As soon as we know the schedule for that vote we will send an Action Alert to ask for your help.

Thanks to every kratom advocate for your support in helping us get to this historic point. We need Wisconsin to be the first of the six states who were misled by the FDA in their kratom bans.

https://tinyurl.com/AKAPleaseDonate

Donate The American Kratom Association is committed to preserve and protect the freedom of kratom consumers

Even after our great successes in 2021 with the WHO decision victory, 2022 is starting with fresh attacks on kratom consumers!

A bill to ban kratom was filed in Kentucky on January 4.

Then another ban kratom bill in the State of Washington on January 11.

Bans in local counties and cities are increasing.

Yesterday, in a Senate committee hearing, it was disclosed that leaders at the National Institute of Health (NIH) decided to go on the attack against reputable scientists who disagreed with them on a COVID-19 virus issue.

The NIH Director told government officials that they had to “take down” the scientists they disagreed with. And then the NIH went on a public attack on those scientists who simply disagreed with them.

The same is happening with kratom.

An online news organization is printing attacks on the kratom advocates, the scientists who do research on kratom, our allies, and the AKA — all by a journalist who claims his nephew died of a kratom overdose. Every death is tragic, but there are times when assumptions based on misinformation or outdated science need to be reevaluated.

Nonetheless, the attacks are vicious.

The attacks are full of distortions, misleading information, and in some case information that is just plain wrong and all designed to divide the kratom community and stop our successes.

We need you help more than ever to fight back.

We have to get the truth about kratom in front of Kentucky and Washington State legislators — and county officials in Mississippi, Florida, California, and more.

We cannot do it without your help.

Please be as generous as you can.

Donate The American Kratom Association is committed to preserve and protect the freedom of kratom consumers

Wisconsin Kratom Update:

As some of you may have heard, the Wisconsin House State Affairs Committee voted 9-2 on Wednesday to replace the current kratom ban in Wisconsin with the Kratom Consumer Protection Act (Assembly Bill 599.) This is a very important step in correcting the mistake made when Wisconsin policy makers believed the FDA’s anti-kratom attacks.

We will need your support to contact the Wisconsin House members when AB 599 is up for a vote (and Senate members after that vote.)

As soon as we know the schedule for that vote we will send an Action Alert to ask for your help.

Thanks to every kratom advocate for your support in helping us get to this historic point. We need Wisconsin to be the first state repeal from the six states who were misled by the FDA in their kratom bans.

Reflecting on the year, it’s clear to see how hard you’ve worked. Your drive and determination helped us to get where we are today, and we couldn’t have done it without you.

While we normally do not post or share these, this is definitely an unusual situation and we will do whatever we can to help.

A Parents Worst Nightmare, organized by Angela Ross and Robin Graham Stephen Hawkins 5-5-1978 - 12/22/2021 Lois Gilpin, known to most people i… Angela Ross and Robin Graham needs your support for A Parents Worst Nightmare

Register to Join us for
Kratom in 2022 & WHO Debrief Webinar
Tuesday 12/21 at 9pm EST

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ww3Jrzp6Q7WdMtWDdL3xgQ

2021 was a pivotal year for kratom consumers and the American Kratom Association. With your help and financial support we were able to submit over 80K comments on kratom to the FDA and WHO, and scientifically demonstrate that kratom should not be banned or receive a critical review!

However the FDA threat to kratom in America isn't over!
The FDA's nominated commissioner is not supportive of kratom and many state bans and proposed bans endanger and disrupt the lives of American kratom consumers.

The AKA is proactively fighting to reverse state bans like those in Wisconsin and Rhode Island, prevent bans in localities across America, and pass Kratom Consumer Protection Acts. Our work in 2021 can make 2022 an even better year, but we need your involvement and support.

Join us this upcoming Tuesday the 21st at 9pm eastern for a webinar on how you can help protect kratom in 2022 and get answers to your questions about the impact of the WHO ECDD decision.

Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: Kratom in 2022: Upcoming Challenges & WHO Debrief. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar. Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: Kratom in 2022: Upcoming Challenges & WHO Debrief. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar.

The WHO finds "insufficient evidence" to justify any critical review of kratom and its alkaloids. Kratom will remain in the lowest international regulatory status of "continuing surveillance." A great victory for kratom consumers, a great victory for science over FDA politics.

WHO ECDD RECOMMENDS AGAINST CRITICAL REVIEW

The American Kratom Association has received initial reports from the World Health Organization Executive Committee on Drug Dependency's report from the October meeting and they stated:

"The Committee concluded that there is insufficient evidence to recommend a critical review of kratom."

This is an enormous validation of the comments you submitted and science we presented to the WHO ECDD. Your comments and ongoing scientific research seem to have weighed heavily in the decision.

The report stated "People report using kratom to self-medicate a variety of disorders and conditions, including pain, opioid withdrawal, opioid use disorder, anxiety and depression. Kratom is being used as a part of traditional medicine in some countries. Research is ongoing to determine the basic pharmacology and the potential therapeutic value of kratom, mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine."

Our fight is far from over in America as we still have state bans, import alerts, and an FDA that seems to ignore the science. However we cannot overstate how important avoiding a WHO critical review or outright scheduling is for millions of American kratom consumers!

WHO ECDD Recommends WHO Secretariat "Surveillance"

Although there was a not a full critical review recommendation, kratom and its chemical components are still going to be monitored by the WHO.

Their official statement: "Recommendation: The Committee recommended that kratom, mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine be kept under surveillance by the WHO Secretariat."

What exactly this will mean for kratom internationally and potential future reviews is unclear, but we can be certain that kratom's enemies will try to bring it up again. In fact, one member of the committee wanted a critical review of mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine.

"With respect to mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine, the Committee, except for one member, also concluded that there is insufficient evidence to recommend a critical review at this time."

More info to come!

While this information is all incredibly encouraging and exciting, the AKA is working hard to understand what the full fallout of the decision will be for kratom. We anticipate the FDA will regroup and look at other avenues to ban kratom, especially at state and local levels. The fight isn't over, but we can't thank you enough for your support in this victory!

Make sure you're signed up for updates, join the American Kratom Protectors, and we will hold a full debriefing webinar soon!

WHO ECDD Kratom Decision Watch the AKA's statement on just discovered WHO ECDD meeting results