If you’ve been following along with us lately, then you know Kratom is currently under attack. Keep reading for all the latest news on the WHO Kratom ban update, and how you can help!
WHO Kratom Ban Update: Background
If you have not been following along with us, or you just need a little refresher on the situation, here’s a summary of what’s been happening so far. On June 10, 2021, the World Health Organization let the U.S. Food and Drug Administration know that Kratom, among other things, was to be under pre-review with the Expert Committee on Drug Dependence.
Now, the FDA is obligated to make this information public, as well as collect comments from the public and consider them before making their recommendation presentation to the WHO. Unsurprisingly, the FDA did not make this information public for 42 days. Finally, on July 22nd, the FDA publicly published a notice of the open comment period; the comment period closes on August 9th.
Given that most open comment periods are about 60 days long, this seems odd. Except for, given that the FDA has a history of clear bias towards Kratom, this action doesn’t seem odd at all from them. In fact, while the FDA neglected to comment on why they waited 42 days to begin with, they did highlight that the comment period had to close on August 9th because their proposal to the WHO was due on August 10th. Yet another unsurprising bias towards Kratom from the FDA. Since they received over 50,000 comments in total, it seems ludicrous that they could seriously “consider,” let alone read any decent amount of these comments before their presentation to the WHO.
AKA Wins Suit Against FDA
The AKA, with their team of Kratom heroes and information finders, received word that the WHO had extended the deadline for the FDA to present their findings from August 10th to August 27th. With this information, the AKA filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS); HHS Secretary Becerra; the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA); and Acting FDA Commissioner Woodcock. The complaint sought to extend the deadline for the comment period to a later date in August in order to give citizens a reasonable amount of time to comment.
The AKA was able to present a case for a clear Kratom bias in the comment process, and they won! The FDA has now extended the comment deadline until August 24th. However, there’s still not much time. The American Kratom Association, and every Kratom customer whose life this product has improved, needs you to go to protectkratom.org and comment your own testimonial about Kratom. By the August 9th original comment close date, the AKA had already collected over 50,000 comments. With your help, they’re hoping to have over 75,000 comments to turn into the FDA, and present to the WHO by August 24th.
Which brings up another question: why is the AKA asking you to comment through their website, instead of on the FDA federal register? Well, remember when the FDA tried to “consider” 50,000 comments overnight? Well, even though they’re bound to collect comments and “consider” them, they are under no obligation to turn over any of the comments collected to the WHO. So that means, after their thorough “consideration” (can you taste the sarcasm there?) that the FDA can say whatever they want to the WHO without them ever seeing any actual testimonials from the American people.
This is why the AKA is urging you to comment through their own website; comments collected through the AKA will be turned over in full to the WHO so that they may be fully considered.
WHO Kratom Ban Update Conclusion
The FDA is still manning its fight against Kratom, but the AKA is landing their own blows, too. This comment extension is a solid win for the AKA and Kratom users everywhere. If you have a Kratom story to tell, we really hope that you will take the time (using the button above) to share your story. You never know, it could just be the moving testimonial that the WHO needs to hear! So submit your comments, tell your friends and family to submit theirs, and keep your fingers crossed with us that the next WHO Kratom ban update is going to be a win for us.
As always, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. To learn more about Kratom, CBD, and related news, check out our blog. And when you’re ready to purchase some top-quality Kratom and CBD products, head on over to our shop!
