Kratom comes off store shelves across Massachusetts on Aug. 28, closing a gap that Kingston’s Board of Health moved to close on its own nearly a year ago.
Governor Maura Healey announced the emergency order on Aug. 13. Department of Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein, MD, PhD, has temporarily placed all forms of kratom into Schedule I under state law, the most restrictive classification the Commonwealth has, reserved for substances with a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical use. The order takes effect after a 14-day notice period and remains in place for up to one year.
For the three towns, the practical effect is the same in every case: any smoke shop, convenience store or gas station still carrying kratom powders, capsules, gummies, shots or dissolvable strips must clear them out, and local boards of health gain explicit authority to enforce that.
The order lands as a win for Rep. Kathy LaNatra, D-Kingston, who has spent two years working the issue in the 12th Plymouth District and at the State House, hosting briefings where legislators heard from parents, pediatricians and public health advocates.
“After hearing a personal story from a constituent and a friend about her child’s usage of kratom products and his subsequent recovery, I made it a top priority of mine to help educate my colleagues and constituents about this drug and do something to keep the residents of Massachusetts safe,” LaNatra said in a statement issued the day of the announcement.
She said her advocacy led “four out of six towns that I represent to issue town-wide bans prior to today’s order.” Her district covers Kingston, Plympton, precincts in Halifax, Middleborough, Pembroke and Plymouth. Plympton and Halifax appear to have been the two hold outs, so this state ban will change the status quo.
Express readers heard the warning early. In July 2025, LaNatra and Kingston Police Chief Brian Holmes went public together about kratom’s spread among local teenagers.
“Too many parents have never even heard of kratom, and yet their kids can walk into a local store and buy it right off the shelf,” LaNatra said at the time.
Holmes was blunter about the enforcement problem. “We’ve encountered young people in our community who are using kratom, unaware of how dangerous it really is. It’s flying under the radar, and that’s a serious problem,” he said. “There are no safeguards in place — no age restrictions, no proper labeling, no public awareness.”
Kingston’s Board of Health acted three months later. After a public hearing on Oct. 6, 2025, the board adopted a “Regulation Prohibiting the Manufacturing, Sale, and Distribution of Kratom, Kratom Products and Kratom Synthetics,” effective Oct. 17, 2025.
That town-to-town gap is what the state order now closes. Beginning Aug. 28, retailers in both towns face the same prohibition as those in Kingston — not through local rulemaking, but by operation of state law.
Cheryl Sbarra, executive director of the Massachusetts Association of Health Boards, emphasized that. “Until now, kratom products were largely unregulated in Massachusetts,” she said. “We are increasingly concerned about their use, especially among young people, because these products are readily available in convenience stores across the Commonwealth.”
Enforcement is a separate question. Boards of Health in all three towns are small operations. Whether the three towns will inspect proactively or respond to complaints remains to be seen.
DPH says it is distributing guidance to local boards of health, health care providers and treatment programs, and will hold an informational webinar for local public health officials on implementing the order.
Kratom is a leafy plant native to Southeast Asia. It contains mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine, or 7-OH, and depending on dose can produce stimulant-like or opioid-like effects. Newer products on the market contain highly concentrated or laboratory-modified compounds with substantially stronger opioid-like effects than the raw plant.
Because the products have gone essentially unregulated, potency and ingredients vary widely from package to package, and buyers have had no reliable way to know what they were getting.
State health officials link kratom use to seizures, hallucinations, psychosis, physical dependence and withdrawal symptoms resembling opioid withdrawal. Overdose risk rises with highly potent products, with products containing unknown substances, and when kratom is combined with opioids, alcohol, benzodiazepines or other sedatives. Kratom-related deaths have been reported but remain uncommon and typically involve other substances or underlying health conditions.
Because the effects can be opioid-like, DPH advises that naloxone be administered immediately if someone who has used kratom has slowed or stopped breathing. Naloxone is available without a prescription at pharmacies and many retail locations.
Dependence is real, and a sudden supply cutoff can produce opioid-like withdrawal. Treatment is available, including medications, counseling, peer support and behavioral health services.
Anyone seeking help for themselves or a family member can call or text “HOPE” to 800-327-5050 to reach the Massachusetts Substance Use Helpline, staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. DPH has posted new resources at mass.gov/kratom covering the risks, how to recognize and respond to an overdose, and how to find treatment.