On July 31, the Drug Enforcement Administration is expected to move forward with the emergency scheduling of SR-17018— a promising NIH-funded research compound that scientists have spent years studying as a potential pathway toward safer pain treatment. Today, Students for Sensible Drug Policy is proud to stand alongside the Rights & Reason Project in filing an emergency request and rulemaking petition urging the DEA to stop this unnecessary ban and allow science — not fear — to guide policy.

Unlike the illicit synthetic opioids driving today’s overdose crisis, SR-17018 was developed by researchers seeking something our country desperately needs: safer alternatives for treating pain. Early preclinical research suggests it may provide pain relief while reducing some of the harms associated with conventional opioids, including respiratory depression, tolerance, and withdrawal. The science is still evolving — but that’s exactly why it should be studied, not criminalized.

The petition asks the DEA to evaluate SR-17018 based on the evidence surrounding this specific compound, rather than grouping it together with unrelated substances that have vastly different records of harm. It also calls on the agency to pause emergency scheduling and instead pursue the transparent scientific review that such an important decision deserves.

Researchers warn that emergency scheduling could criminalize years of taxpayer-funded scientific research before clinical trials have the opportunity to determine whether SR-17018 can fulfill its therapeutic promise.

As chemist and science journalist Hamilton Morris explained:

“SR-17018 was developed at Scripps Research with taxpayer-funded NIH grants as part of an effort to create safer opioid medicines. When evidence began to emerge that SR-17018 had therapeutic value, the DEA moved to place it in Schedule I through an emergency process that provides no evidentiary hearing and is insulated from judicial review. Not a single overdose or death attributable to SR-17018 was identified, hundreds of reports of successful opioid use disorder treatment were ignored. American taxpayers are now being asked to fund the criminalization of the medicine they paid to create.”

This is what the War on Drugs has always looked like. Rather than investing in innovation, expanding scientific knowledge, and following the evidence, policymakers too often choose prohibition first and ask questions later. The result is delayed medical progress, fewer treatment options, and barriers that make it harder for researchers to solve the very problems policymakers claim to care about.

We don’t have to accept that.

There is still time to make your voice heard before the DEA moves forward. If you believe science should determine whether SR-17018 succeeds or fails — not politics — take action today.

Send a letter to Congress urging lawmakers to oppose this ban. If you or someone you know has experience with SR-17018, share your story through our action tool as well. Personal stories help lawmakers understand what’s at stake and remind them that drug policy affects real people, not just regulations.

The War on Drugs is a War on Us. Together, we can build a future where research is encouraged, innovation is protected, and public policy is driven by evidence instead of fear.

Take action now.