Georgia state Rep. Dewayne Hill, R-Ringgold, recently received the 2019 Recovery Champion Award from the Georgia Council on Substance Abuse for his work on a House bill regulating the drug kratom.
“I am honored to receive this award from the Georgia Council on Substance Abuse,” Hill said. “We spent last year studying the risks associated with the use of kratom, and through our work, we discovered the need for legislation to regulate this opioid-like drug in our state. It is my hope that this new law will ultimately save lives and help to curb opioid addiction in Georgia.”
House Bill 551, signed into law by Gov. Brian Kemp in April, regulates kratom, a tropical evergreen that contains the alkaloid mitragynine. It is a misdemeanor to transfer possession to those under age 18, or for those under 18 to possess or buy it. To sell kratom, the packaging must clearly label ingredients; provide notice that the sale or transfer of possession to those under the age of 18 is prohibited; state the amount of mitragynine in the product; state the name and principal mailing address of the manufacturer; provide clear directions for safe use of the product; and note any precautionary statements on the product’s safety and effectiveness.