Health / Public Health
Pennsylvania warns providers of possible 7-OH withdrawal cases ahead of federal rescheduling
The Pennsylvania Department of Health alerted providers to a likely rise in withdrawal patients if 7-OH becomes a Schedule I substance.
Source-checked story: attributed primary-source and published reporting; no on-location reporting.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health is alerting health care providers to a likely increase in patients with opioid withdrawal symptoms after a currently legal substance is rescheduled, which could happen as soon as Nov. 13, the Cranberry Eagle reported.
The Drug Enforcement Administration intends to reschedule 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH), related substances MGM-15 and MGM-16, and tianeptine as Schedule I controlled substances, according to the report. The department said 7-OH and related substances have effects similar to opioids and are found in leaves of the kratom tree.
Through July, 7-OH contributed to 17 overdose deaths in the state in 2026, according to health department data. It contributed to 33 deaths in 2025, 38 in 2024 and 65 in 2023.
The department warned that rescheduling could increase overdose risk as people seeking the substance turn to street supplies or other illicit substances. Buprenorphine and methadone, which are used to treat opioid use disorder, are also commonly used to treat 7-OH withdrawal, the report said.
“Our clinicians have experience successfully treating withdrawal from these substances using approaches similar to those used for opioid withdrawal,” said Michael Lynch, a UPMC emergency medicine physician.
What we know / what we don't
What we know
- The Pennsylvania Department of Health alerted providers to a likely rise in withdrawal patients if 7-OH becomes a Schedule I substance.
What we don't know
- The final effective date of the DEA rescheduling.
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