[DES MOINES, Iowa] — An Iowa House subcommittee gathered public comments on a potential bill that could increase penalties for possessing kratom, a substance some believe to be dangerous.
The proposed bill aims to reclassify kratom as a hallucinogenic Schedule One substance. If passed, possession could lead to progressively serious misdemeanors, with penalties reaching up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Susan Cave, a supporter of the bill, expressed concerns about the safety of kratom. “Do you really think people can be responsible kratom consumers when so little is known about how to safely consume kratom? There’s no lethal dose established, how it interacts with other drugs, what the long-term effects are of chronic use, how it may affect a person with underlying health conditions,” Cave said…