top of page
All Posts from Our Alternative Wellness Blog
Discover how science-driven innovation and real-world regulation intersect in the wellness space. Our alternative wellness blog unpacks trends in functional foods, supplements, and emerging therapies so you can move faster while staying compliant. From FDA guidance to state-by-state nuances, we translate complex rules into clear strategies for brands, investors, and operators. Each post connects market data with practical next steps your team can act on today. Whether youre launching a new product line or scaling a multi-state wellness business, our alternative wellness blog gives you expert insight, strategic context, and actionable ideas to stay ahead of shifting consumer demand and regulatory expectations.
Pending Bills
Bills, proposals, notices, hearings and ballot questions that are not law yet.
New Jersey S4635 Passes Both Houses; Nov 13 Still Controls Until It's Signed
Thynk News | www.thynk.guru | October 30, 2026 [Pending bill] On 10/26 I wrote that S4635 was not yet a December 11 law. That framing is out of date, so here is the update. S4635 passed the Senate 37-0 on October 22 and the Assembly 75-2 on October 29. I checked both votes on the NJ Legislature site. The bill has passed both houses and now waits on the Governor. Until it is signed, it is still a pending bill. [Pending bill] If the Governor signs it, S4635 moves New Jersey's e
Chris Girard
3 days ago1 min read
Hemp News Break: The Dec 11 fix may ride on a budget bill
Two House members now say out loud how they want to stop the hemp ban from hitting on Dec 11. Nothing is filed and none of it is law, but it's the first real path with a date on it.
Chris Girard
5 days ago1 min read
New Jersey's S4635 Isn't a December 11 Law Yet. November 13 Still Is.
New Jersey's S4635 would move the hemp beverage cutoff from November 13 to a floating federal date. It has passed the Senate. It has not passed the Assembly, and it is not law. Here is what the bill and the law on the books actually say.
Chris Girard
7 days ago6 min read
Massachusetts Question 8 Is a Vote. It Isn't a Closing Date.
Massachusetts Question 8 would repeal adult-use sales, but its own text says it takes effect January 1, 2028. A yes vote on November 3 doesn't close a single store on November 4. It does reprice every lease, loan, and deal that runs past 2027.
Chris Girard
Oct 224 min read
Georgia's AG Wants a Kratom Ban. That Isn't Georgia Law.
Georgia's Attorney General wants a default ban on kratom products. That's an op-ed, not law. The law Georgia already has caps 7-OH at 0.5 mg per gram, half of DEA's proposed line, and it covers anything sold in or shipped into the state.
Chris Girard
Oct 165 min read
DEA's new 7-OH threshold notice is not a kratom leaf ban
DEA filed a new notice to put 7-OH and mitragynine pseudoindoxyl in Schedule I above a set threshold. It's getting called a kratom ban. It isn't one, it isn't in effect yet, and "under the line" doesn't mean safe or legal everywhere. Here's how the test actually works and what I'd do with your COAs this month.
Chris Girard
Oct 145 min read
An FDA Part 15 psychedelics hearing is not a delivery rule
Tonight the comment window on FDA-2026-N-7542 closes. A Part 15 hearing is information-gathering — not a REMS, not rescheduling, and not a delivery rule. Soft talk about credentialing still gets quoted like the industry already signed off.
Chris Girard
Oct 54 min read
Bellingham's final kratom reading is not a statewide ban
Bellingham's Sep 28 final consideration of AB 25055 is a local BMC 10.08 kratom sales ban — not a Washington statewide ban.
Chris Girard
Sep 284 min read
DEA's five-tryptamine NPRM is not Schedule I
A September 23 NPRM proposing Schedule I for five tryptamines is not a final Schedule I listing.
Chris Girard
Sep 254 min read
Oklahoma Turner's Schedule I intent is not a kratom ban
operator dual-map — OK House Turner Schedule I intent is not enacted ban; live rail is SB891 / 63 O.S. 1-1432.2–.4 KCPA
Chris Girard
Sep 245 min read
Saratoga's October 14 hearing is not a kratom ban
A scheduled Saratoga County hearing is not an enacted kratom ban.
Chris Girard
Sep 212 min read
September 14 is an FDA hearing — not a CSA reschedule
September 14 is an FDA part 15 hearing on supervised therapeutic use of psychedelics — not a CSA reschedule. FDA said scheduling status is out of scope. Keep it separate from the Sep 10 7-OH window and the hemp split clock.
Chris Girard
Sep 94 min read
Both chambers have acted. Watch the desk. November 12 still governs.
Both chambers have finished with H.R. 6500. That is new. It is still not a statute. November 12 still governs until enrolled text is signed.
Chris Girard
Sep 24 min read
The next step is a signature. December is a hallway, not a rescue.
The House agreed to the Senate amendments to H.R. 6500 on Roll 286. That is not a hemp delay. November 12 is still the date until a signature exists. December, if it comes, is a hallway.
Chris Girard
Sep 15 min read
The House agreed. November 12 is still the date.
The House agreed to the Senate amendments to H.R. 6500 on Roll 286. That is not enrolled text, not a signature, and not Public Law. November 12 is still the federal hemp date.
Chris Girard
Sep 14 min read
A schedule is not a vote. November 12 is still the date.
The House Majority Leader put H.R. 6500, the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2027, on the suspension list starting Tuesday, September 1, 2026. That is a floor calendar. It is not an enacted delay of the hemp cliff. The live federal date is still November 12, 2026. If you are rewriting a catalog, a COA template, or a retailer letter off “Dec 11,” you are trading a Whip PDF for a statute. What the schedule actually says Monday, August 31 is medals and technical bi
Chris Girard
Aug 314 min read
Understanding the DEA's Temporary Scheduling of Kratom Derivatives: What You Need to Know
DEA temporarily put mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, MGM-15, and MGM-16 in Schedule I as of Aug 26 through Aug 26 2028 (FR 2026-17429, 91 FR 54948). 7-OH is still not federally scheduled.
Chris Girard
Aug 273 min read
bottom of page