The Department of Health and Human Services will allow compounding pharmacies to manufacture and sell peptides that have not yet been added to the list of approved substances, The Hill reported. According to the report, the department stated in a notice that it would be practicing enforcement discretion, and the step advances access to peptides championed by the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) agenda.
Joseph Choi wrote the Hill report. The summary of that report does not describe the terms of the notice beyond the enforcement discretion statement, so the scope of the change is not set out here.
Separately, The Guardian reported that a coroner has called for Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration to review unapproved peptides after the death of Richard Norton, 75, an Australian actor. The report, written by Australian Associated Press, described Norton as an experienced film industry fight choreographer and stuntman. It said he went into cardiac arrest in March 2025 after injecting prescribed but unapproved CJC1295 and ipamorelin.
The Guardian reported that the death "could result in tougher restrictions on the substances." The summary does not specify what restrictions a review might produce or when.
The summaries do not connect the two developments. The Hill's account concerns a notice from the Department of Health and Human Services, while The Guardian's concerns a coroner's recommendation to Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration. The available summaries do not say whether the Australian case has any bearing on the HHS notice.
Sources: The Hill: HHS to allow sale of unapproved peptides under review; The Guardian: Coroner calls for TGA to review unapproved peptides after death of Australian actor.