Kratom products have been sold in the U.S. for decades, largely skirting any regulation. But as Americans increasingly turn to newer, more potent 7-OH products, pressure is mounting for better guardrails. www.statnews.com/2026/09/30/d...
statnews.com
Kratom and 7-OH should be regulated, experts agree. They're split on how
Kratom has skirted regulation for decades, but newer, highly concentrated 7-OH products have renewed interest in safeguards.
![Screenshot of a Morning Rounds newsletter item titled: AMA clarifies gender-affirming surgery comment (sort of)
Remember last month when Daniel Payne and I wrote about the American Society of Plastic Surgeons’ new position statement about gender-affirming surgery for young people? The professional group generally recommended that procedures like top surgery be delayed until age 19. Soon after, a comment to reporters from the American Medical Association began circulating, which said that “in the absence of clear evidence, the AMA agrees with ASPS that surgical interventions in minors should be generally deferred to adulthood.”
But an AMA Board newsletter sent yesterday asserted that “while some media coverage characterized [the comment] as agreement with the ASPS statement, that phrasing did not come from the AMA.” I asked the AMA if it’s alleging that media outlets fabricated or otherwise messed up part of the comment, but the group did not respond to that specific inquiry. The AMA has requested a correction from The New York Times in particular, per the newsletter, and asserted there’s been no policy change and the comment was not an endorsement of the ASPS position. I wrote about this confusion back in February but didn’t receive a response from the AMA at the time.
Overall, the Board newsletter reiterated the AMA’s support for gender-affirming care, saying the intent of the comment was “to preserve — not diminish — access.”](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:xdlkuqo5dgf3jdtwfnlsrvwx/bafkreibb6cf47owlc3ez5rwc6vnlkxstjaj4vdslxknszb56lqeshvq6rq)
