KBI and pharmacy board press Kansas committee to add fentanyl class and consider scheduling 7‑OH; industry urges carve‑out for natural kratom

The Board of Pharmacy and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation told the House Health and Human Services Committee that updates to the state controlled‑substances schedules are needed to match federal actions and to address rising harms from concentrated kratom derivatives.

Jenna Moyer, committee staff, opened the HB2765 hearing by saying the bill updates KSA schedule lists to conform with federal scheduling and to reduce the need for annual molecule‑by‑molecule updates. Staff noted the bill would amend multiple KSA sections and take effect July 1.

Alexandra Blasey, executive director of the Kansas State Board of Pharmacy, urged timely passage and described the board’s use of an 8‑factor analysis when recommending scheduling. She said the board supports adding a fentanyl‑class provision similar to the federal HALT Fentanyl Act to capture structural derivatives and avoid repeated statutory edits, and recommended correcting inconsistent THC carbon‑numbering in statute to the dibenzopyran scheme for clarity.

Bob Stewart, executive officer of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, said law enforcement is seeing concentrated and synthesized 7‑hydroxymitragynine (referred to in testimony as "7‑OH"), sometimes at extremely high potency. Stewart said one tested product contained roughly 13 times the potency of morphine and that the substance is appearing in retail products accessible to youth. He recommended placing 7‑OH on the controlled‑substances schedule.

Patrick Parevsky, a forensic chemist and KBI laboratory operations manager, presented the chemistry behind the fentanyl‑class approach, the THC nomenclature correction and how mitragynine is chemically converted to 7‑OH. He cited federal and KDHE reports urging caution about 7‑OH’s abuse potential and said naloxone can reverse kratom‑related opioid effects according to available studies.

Opponents and public commenters urged narrower language. Matthew Lowe, executive director of the Global Kratom Coalition (virtual testimony), said the bill as drafted could criminalize natural kratom leaf because trace amounts of 7‑OH occur naturally during drying. He urged the committee to adopt a numeric threshold (he cited 400 parts per million used in Florida and Kentucky emergency scheduling) to target concentrated synthetic products while preserving lawful commerce for natural leaf. Nick Reinicker, a private citizen, also opposed broad scheduling citing liberty and commercial concerns.

KBI witnesses acknowledged laboratory and prosecutorial challenges with a ppm cutoff: testing many samples to a quantitative threshold can be resource‑intensive and may complicate prosecutions compared with a straightforward prohibition. Stewart said KBI scientists would participate in crafting workable language.

Committee members asked about jurisdictional and enforcement details and whether the bill had been discussed in interim or other committees; staff and witnesses said the matter raises technical questions that likely require additional work before final action. The committee closed the hearing without taking final action and indicated further discussion and possible conference between chambers would follow.