Policy · 2025-03-19
17 States Debating Kratom Bills in Early 2025 as KCPA Adoption Grows and Wrongful Death Lawsuits Rise
Source: Verisk Emerging Issues
Why it matters
With 17 states already debating kratom bills in early 2025 — more than the entirety of 2024 — the legislative landscape is shifting rapidly, and the Verisk analysis shows wrongful death lawsuits are increasingly concentrated in states that have passed the Kratom Consumer Protection Act (KCPA).
The big picture
The KCPA, promoted by the kratom industry, aims to regulate (not ban) kratom by setting labeling requirements, age limits, and alkaloid content caps. By contrast, six states maintain outright bans. The divergence in state approaches reflects deepening disagreement about whether regulation or prohibition is the appropriate response to growing kratom use. The association between KCPA-enacting states and wrongful death litigation may signal that legal accountability is following regulated access.
Key findings
- 17 states introduced kratom-related legislation in the first weeks of 2025 — more than all of 2024
- 6 states had outright bans on kratom or its intoxicating compounds as of early 2025
- 14 states had laws permitting kratom sales based on the KCPA model
- KCPA provisions include: age limits (18 or 21), a 2% cap on 7-hydroxymitragynine content, product labeling requirements, and disclosure of alkaloid concentrations
- Wrongful death litigation involving kratom has generally emerged in KCPA-regulated states
- States introducing KCPA bills in 2025 include: Hawaii, Illinois, Montana, Nebraska, and South Carolina
What they say
According to Verisk's Government Relations team analysis: "State legislative activity related to kratom products has accelerated in 2025" and "wrongful death litigation appears loosely associated with states that have enacted a KCPA."
Bottom line
The kratom policy landscape is fragmenting rapidly — as more states adopt industry-backed KCPA regulations, wrongful death lawsuits are emerging in those same states, creating new legal exposure for the kratom industry even under a regulatory framework.