We The People of this United States of America plead before the same congress that gave the

DEA its powers to review their current actions and stop this unwarranted emergency
scheduling of Kratom immediately until the rules set forth under the Controlled Substances
Act for scheduling drugs can be followed accordingly.
Im a responsible adult consumer of Kratom for help with cervical spinal stenosis. Please contact Congressman
Pocan's office to sign-on to the Pocan/Salmon Dear Colleague letter on this issue. US Capitol Switchboard (202)
224-3121 (choose option 2 for House)
Here are a few of our congressman that have already made the ethical and logical choice:
Mark Pocan-DWI, Matt Salmon-RAZ, John Conyers-DMI, Hank Johnson-DGA,
Tim Ryan-DOH, Jared Polis-DCO, Adam Smith-DWA, Dana Rohrabacher-RCA,
Daniel Benishek, M.D.-RMI, Steve Cohen-DTN, Joe Heck, D.O.-RNV, John Yarmuth-D KY,
Mark Sandord-RSC, Mick Mulvaney-RSC, Steve Israel-D NY, Ted Poe-RTX,
Keith EllisonD- MN, Gerald E. Connolly-D-VA, Betty McCollum-DMN, Earl Blumenauer-DOR,
Tulsi Gabbard-DHI, Gwen MooreDWI, Brad Wenstrup M.D.R-OH, Tom GravesRGA,
Justin AmashR-MI, Barbara LeeDCA, Michael HondaD-CA
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Citing research conducted by the USDA, NIH, University of Massachusetts Medical School, and the University of Mississippi, the CRE
shows that the DEA has arbitrarily banned Kratom and that the DEAs own claims are either disproven or contradicted by the findings of
organizations who have actually conducted research on the substance.
The CRE points out that the DEAs policy on Kratom is in conflict with the policy of a number of other federal agencies and, thus, the
legality of Kratom falls under the jurisdiction of the Office of Management and Budget whose job it is to settle inter-agency conflicts of
policy.
"The Controlled Substances Act states ( 21 U.S.C. 811(h)(1) that the Attorney General may act without adherence to established
administrative processes If the Attorney General finds that the scheduling of a substance in Schedule I on a temporary basis is necessary
to avoid an imminent hazard to the public safety.
An imminent hazard cannot be proven by citing a Thai study and all 15 deaths and CDC reports referenced in all cases had other
substances/drugs in their system besides Kratom. There are NO known cases where Kratom was the sole substance to cause harm.
The DEAs August 31, 2016 Federal Register notice placing Mitragynine and 7-Hydroxymitragynine into Schedule I highlights the out of
context observation that the consumption of kratom individually,or in conjunction with alcohol or other drugs, is of serious concern as it
can lead to severe adverse effects and death. The FR notice, however, left out the crucial supporting data that is necessary to understand
the information provided by DEA and to it place in a policy context. Earlier this year, the peer-reviewed neuroscience journal Brain
Research Bulletin published a survey of the literature on traditional and non-traditional uses of Mitragynin which found that,
While several cases of toxicity and death have emerged in the West, such reports have been non-existent in South East Asia where Kratom
has had a longer history of use. We highlight the possible reasons for this as discussed in the literature. More importantly, it should be
borne in mind that the individual clinical casereports emerging from the West that link kratom use to adverse reactions or fatalities
frequently pertained to kratom used together with other substances. Therefore, there is a danger of these reports being used to strengthen
the case for legal sanction against Kratom. This would be unfortunate since the experiences from South East Asia suggest considerable
potential for therapeutic use

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PREVENT DRUG ENFORCEMENT AGENCY OVERREACH AND

PRESERVE CONSUMER ACCESS TO NATURAL HERBAL SUPPLEMENT
KRATOM
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Join Reps. Mark Pocan and Matt Salmon in Urging the Office of Management and Budget and the Drug
Enforcement Agency to Delay Final Action Listing Kratom as a Schedule I substance under the Controlled
Substances Act
Current co-signers: Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers
Deadline Friday September 23rd COB
Dear Colleague:
I invite you to join me in sending a bipartisan letter to the Drug Enforcement Agency to encourage more research
into the natural supplement, Kratom. Kratom (Mitragyna sepciosa) is made from the leaves of a tropical tree native
to Southeast Asia and a relative of the coffee plant. Kratom leaves are often brewed like a tea, or crushed and
mixed with water. In the U.S., kratom has become popular among people coping with chronic pain and others
trying to wean themselves off opioids or alcohol.
The main chemical is mitragynine. It binds to some of the same receptors as opioids, providing some pain relief
and a calming effect, but, not the same high. And the chemical doesn't cause the same, sometimes deadly, side
effects as opioids, such as respiratory depression.
On August 31, the Drug Enforcement Agency published a notice of intent in the Federal Register stating its plan
to list the herb as a Schedule I substance, the most restrictive category, alongside heroin and LSD, effective
September 30th with no opportunity for a public comment period.
The National Institutes of Health has funded a joint study conducted by the University of Massachusetts and the
University of Mississippi to investigate the use of kratom as a remedy for opioid withdrawal. This study led the
researchers to apply for a patent identifying the kratom extract, mitragyinine, as a useful treatment for other
addictive drugs besides opiate derivatives. The DEAs decision to place kratom as a Schedule I substance will put
a halt on federally funded research and innovation surrounding the treatment of individuals suffering from opioid
and other addictionsa significant public health threat.
The letter asks the Director of OMB and Acting Director of the DEA to delay a final decision on the placement of
Kratom as a schedule I, provide ample time for public comment on this significant decision, and resolve any
inconsistencies with other Federal Agencies regarding the use of Kratom.
Please join me in this effort to prevent the DEA from regulatory overreach and restricting consumer access to this
natural herbal supplement.
Sincerely,
Mark Pocan
Member of Congress

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#IamKratom
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