{"id":4279,"date":"2026-11-06T14:31:41","date_gmt":"2026-11-06T14:31:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/?p=4279"},"modified":"2026-11-06T14:31:41","modified_gmt":"2026-11-06T14:31:41","slug":"legal-risks-associated-with-peptides-for-practicing-physicians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drsoniafawad.com\/?p=4279","title":{"rendered":"Legal risks associated with peptides for practicing physicians"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-component=\"ArticleContent\">\n<div class=\"article__below-title\">\n<div class=\" article__posted-date\">\n<p>November 06, 2026<\/p>\n<p>2 min read<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"mobile-trust-box\">\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-5 d-xl-none\">\n<div class=\"trust-box\">\n<div class=\"trust-box-logo d-none d-md-block\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/~\/media\/h5\/feature\/news\/publogos\/ot.svg?la=en&amp;h=23&amp;w=159&amp;hash=0C53011B4A1D906E8E9D275AC6F6251E\" class=\"logo-img\" height=\"23\" alt=\"Orthapedics today logo\" width=\"159\"\/>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 offset-md-1 offset-xl-0 col-xl-12\">\n<div class=\"email-alert-button-wrapper d-none\" data-component=\"EmailTopicAlert\" data-module=\"Subspecialty Email Topic Alerts Top\" data-manage-email-link=\"\/footer\/account-information\/my-account\/email-subscriptions-and-alerts#emailAlerts\">\n<hidden data-setting-item=\"d265901d-6d37-49c7-a8f6-c7bf19a02509\"\/><br \/>\n<hidden data-crm-source=\"Subspecialty Topic Alert\"\/><\/p>\n<div class=\"email-alert-button d-none\" data-topic-button=\"not-subscribed\">\n<p>\n<span data-module-track-action=\"Email Alerts TOP_Click_Healio News Article\" data-module-track-label=\"Email Alerts TOP_Healio News Article\"><br \/>\n<i class=\"fas fa-plus-circle\"\/><br \/>\nAdd topic to email alerts<br \/>\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"email-alert-inner collapse u064e1b51119d4f1fb6016b19e25dfcde\">\n<div class=\"email-alert-dialogue\">\n<p>\nReceive an email when new articles are posted on <span data-content=\"topic-title\"\/>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"d-none\" data-sign-up-type=\"unknown\">\nPlease provide your email address to receive an email when new articles are posted on <span data-content=\"topic-title\"\/>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><button type=\"button\" class=\"btn btn-primary\" data-loading-text=\"Loading &lt;i class=\" fa=\"\" fa-spinner=\"\" fa-spin=\"\">&#8221; data-action=subscribe&gt;<br \/>\nSubscribe<br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"d-none\" data-topic-modal=\"failed\"> <strong>We were unable to process your request. Please try again later. If you continue to have this issue please contact <a href=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/news\/orthopedics\/20261106\/mailto:customerservice@slackinc.com\">customerservice@slackinc.com<\/a>.<\/strong> <\/p>\n<p><button data-dismiss=\"modal\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-lg btn-block\">Back to Healio<\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Physicians prescribing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/news\/orthopedics\/20261104\/bro-science-or-breakthrough-peptide-craze-hits-orthopedics\">peptides<\/a> that have not been FDA approved continue to face a myriad of potential legal and regulatory risks.<\/p>\n<p>While prescribing FDA-approved semaglutide (Ozempic and Wegovy, Novo Nordisk) and tirzepatide (Zepbound and Mounjaro, Eli Lilly) for their approved uses presents few regulatory issues for physicians, many other unapproved peptides prescribed and promoted for various uses are currently being produced by compounding pharmacies.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"figure article__og-image\">\n<picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/www.healio.comhttps:\/\/www.healio.comhttps:\/\/www.healio.com\/~\/media\/slack-news\/orthopedics\/misc\/infographics\/2026\/ot1026herschman_graphic_01_web.webp?w=476\" media=\"(max-width: 768px)\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/~\/media\/slack-news\/orthopedics\/misc\/infographics\/2026\/ot1026herschman_graphic_01_web.webp?w=800\" media=\"(max-width: 992px)\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/~\/media\/slack-news\/orthopedics\/misc\/infographics\/2026\/ot1026herschman_graphic_01_web.webp?w=595\" media=\"(max-width: 1200px)\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/www.healio.comhttps:\/\/www.healio.comhttps:\/\/www.healio.com\/~\/media\/slack-news\/orthopedics\/misc\/infographics\/2026\/ot1026herschman_graphic_01_web.webp?w=476\" media=\"(min-width: 1200px)\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/www.healio.comhttps:\/\/www.healio.comhttps:\/\/www.healio.com\/~\/media\/slack-news\/orthopedics\/misc\/infographics\/2026\/ot1026herschman_graphic_01_web.webp?w=476\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/~\/media\/slack-news\/orthopedics\/misc\/infographics\/2026\/ot1026herschman_graphic_01_web.jpg?w=800\" alt=\"OT1026Herschman_Graphic_01\" class=\"figure-img img-fluid\" width=\"800\"\/><br \/>\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><figcaption class=\"figure-caption\">\n<i>Source: Gary W. Herschman, JD, and Mark Yacura, JD<\/i><br \/>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/news\/orthopedics\/20261105\/patients-are-injecting-peptides-ask-before-you-operate\">Physicians<\/a> who prescribe, source, promote or administer peptides that are not FDA approved or have not been included in FDA\u2019s bulk substances lists face significant potential regulatory, civil and even criminal risks.<\/p>\n<h2>Regulatory and licensing risks<\/h2>\n<p>Prescribing or compounding peptides that violate FDA rules, such as utilizing bulk drug substances that FDA has not deemed safe and placed into FDA\u2019s bulk substances list, can lead to disciplinary action, fines or revocation of a physician\u2019s state medical license by the state medical board where he or she practices.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mug2col left\">\n<div class=\"col1\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/~\/media\/slack-news\/orthopedics\/mugs\/h\/herschman_gary_2025.jpg?h=107&amp;w=80\" style=\"width: 80px; height: 107px;\" alt=\"Gary W. Herschman\"\/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Gary W. Herschman<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col2\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/~\/media\/slack-news\/orthopedics\/mugs\/y\/yacura_mark_2026.jpg?h=107&amp;w=80\" style=\"width: 80px; height: 107px;\" alt=\"Mark Yacura\"\/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Mark Yacura<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>In July 2026, the FDA\u2019s Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee (PCAC) voted to recommend adding six peptides to the FDA\u2019s Section 503A bulk substances list, which would enable compounding pharmacies to compound these peptides under strict parameters without concern for current FDA enforcement action. The FDA is, however, not legally bound to follow these recommendations as the PCAC recommendations are only advisory, and the FDA can accept, reject or take substantial time to act on them.<\/p>\n<p>On Oct. 14, 2026, FDA issued an interim policy statement to the White House stating it intends to use \u201cenforcement discretion\u201d and would pause enforcing against pharmacies sourcing these six bulk peptide substances for compounding. On Oct. 27, 2026, the White House Office of Management and Budget affirmed the FDA policy proposal. On Oct. 30, the formalized policy was published by the <i>Federal Register<\/i>. FDA\u2019s enforcement discretion regarding these six peptides will remain in force until final rulemaking regarding their inclusion in FDA\u2019s bulk drug substance list is completed or if and until safety issues regarding any of these peptides becomes apparent to the FDA.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, many state boards of pharmacy and state attorneys general have authority under their state\u2019s laws to take independent enforcement actions against unapproved compounded peptides regardless of federal committee recommendations or any FDA policy.<\/p>\n<h2>Misbranding and distribution<\/h2>\n<p>Beyond state administrative action risks to physicians, federal prosecutors have presented evidence to grand juries who have indicted licensed physicians for prosecution for ordering peptides that have not been approved by the FDA from overseas or unverified third-party intermediaries and dispensing them to patients.<\/p>\n<p>Sourcing or selling unapproved, misbranded or research-use-only peptides can result in federal criminal actions against physicians who prescribe or dispense such peptides or promote them for clinically unproven uses. Thus, purchasing peptides from unverified online vendors or research-only suppliers \u2014 rather than licensed, compliant compounding pharmacies \u2014 places legal liability on the prescriber for any product contamination, mislabeling or purity failures.<\/p>\n<h2>Fraud, misrepresentation claims<\/h2>\n<p>If a physician markets unapproved peptides as capable of preventing or treating disease or a medical condition without competent and reliable scientific evidence, the physician is potentially subject to civil fraud, deceptive trade practice or consumer protection lawsuits at both the federal and state level.<\/p>\n<h2>Medical malpractice<\/h2>\n<p>Administering or recommending experimental or off-label peptides that lack rigorous, placebo-controlled human clinical trials exposes physicians to malpractice lawsuits if patients experience serious adverse reactions, unexpected side effects or death.<\/p>\n<p>Further, physicians have a legal duty to inform patients if a therapy is experimental and the prescribed or dispensed peptide is not approved by the FDA, lacks long-term human safety data or the physician fails to disclose all potential side effects.<\/p>\n<p>Failing to adequately document and secure proper informed consent exposes a physician to legal claims if untoward side effects or serious or life-threatening adverse events materialize.<\/p>\n<h2>For more information:<\/h2>\n<p> <b>Gary <\/b><b>W. <\/b><b>Herschman, <\/b><b>JD<\/b><b>,<\/b> and <b>Mark Yacura, JD,<\/b> are members of Baker Donelson and can be reached at <a rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bakerdonelson.com\/\" id=\"rId8\" target=\"_blank\">www.bakerdonelson.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article__content--footer\">\n<div class=\"publisher-logo\">\n<span>Published by:<\/span><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/~\/media\/h5\/feature\/news\/publogos\/ot.svg?la=en&amp;h=23&amp;w=159&amp;hash=0C53011B4A1D906E8E9D275AC6F6251E\" class=\"logo-img\" height=\"23\" alt=\"Orthapedics today logo\" width=\"159\"\/>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sources-references-disclosures\">\n<h3>Sources\/Disclosures<\/h3>\n<h2> Source: <\/h2>\n<p class=\"citation\">Expert Submission<\/p>\n<div class=\"disclosures\">\n<p>\n<strong> Disclosures: <\/strong><br \/>\nHerschman reports being a healthcare transaction attorney for more than 30 years and being co-chair of the healthcare transactions group at Baker Donelson. Yacura reports no relevant financial disclosures.\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"healio-ai-component-inline\" data-no-ads=\"true\" data-module-track-category=\"Healio AI\" data-module-track-action=\"Click\" data-module-track-label=\"Access Healio Ai from component - News_AI Component - In-Content (all devices)\">\n<div class=\"healio-ai-content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/m3.healio.com\/~\/media\/images\/healio-ai\/healio-ai_logo.svg\" alt=\"Healio AI\" class=\"healio-ai-logo\"\/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Ask a clinical question<\/strong> and tap into <strong>Healio AI&#8217;s knowledge<\/strong> base.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>PubMed, enrolling\/recruiting trials, guidelines<\/li>\n<li>Clinical Guidance, Healio CME, FDA news<\/li>\n<li>Healio&#8217;s exclusive daily news coverage of clinical data<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><button class=\"healio-ai-button\" onclick=\"window.location.href=\" https:=\"\">Learn more<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"email-alert-button-wrapper d-none\" data-component=\"EmailTopicAlert\" data-module=\"Subspecialty Email Topic Alerts Top\" data-manage-email-link=\"\/footer\/account-information\/my-account\/email-subscriptions-and-alerts#emailAlerts\">\n<hidden data-setting-item=\"d265901d-6d37-49c7-a8f6-c7bf19a02509\"\/><br \/>\n<hidden data-crm-source=\"Subspecialty Topic Alert\"\/><\/p>\n<div class=\"email-alert-button d-none\" data-topic-button=\"not-subscribed\">\n<p>\n<span data-module-track-action=\"Email Alerts TOP_Click_Healio News Article\" data-module-track-label=\"Email Alerts TOP_Healio News Article\"><br \/>\n<i class=\"fas fa-plus-circle\"\/><br \/>\nAdd topic to email alerts<br \/>\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"email-alert-inner collapse u064e1b51119d4f1fb6016b19e25dfcde\">\n<div class=\"email-alert-dialogue\">\n<p>\nReceive an email when new articles are posted on <span data-content=\"topic-title\"\/>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"d-none\" data-sign-up-type=\"unknown\">\nPlease provide your email address to receive an email when new articles are posted on <span data-content=\"topic-title\"\/>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><button type=\"button\" class=\"btn btn-primary\" data-loading-text=\"Loading &lt;i class=\" fa=\"\" fa-spinner=\"\" fa-spin=\"\">&#8221; data-action=subscribe&gt;<br \/>\nSubscribe<br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"d-none\" data-topic-modal=\"failed\"> <strong>We were unable to process your request. Please try again later. If you continue to have this issue please contact <a href=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/news\/orthopedics\/20261106\/mailto:customerservice@slackinc.com\">customerservice@slackinc.com<\/a>.<\/strong> <\/p>\n<p><button data-dismiss=\"modal\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-lg btn-block\">Back to Healio<\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.healio.com\/news\/orthopedics\/20261106\/legal-risks-associated-with-peptides-for-practicing-physicians\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>November 06, 2026 2 min read Add topic to email alerts Receive an email when new articles are posted on Please provide your email address to receive an email when new articles are posted on . &#8221; data-action=subscribe&gt; Subscribe We were unable to process your request. Please try again later. If you continue to have this issue please contact customerservice@slackinc.com. Back to Healio Physicians prescribing peptides that have not been FDA approved continue to face a myriad of potential legal and regulatory risks. While prescribing FDA-approved semaglutide (Ozempic and Wegovy, Novo Nordisk) and tirzepatide (Zepbound and Mounjaro, Eli Lilly) for their approved uses presents few regulatory issues for physicians, many other unapproved peptides prescribed and promoted for various uses are currently being produced by compounding pharmacies. Source: Gary W. Herschman, JD, and Mark Yacura, JD Physicians who prescribe, source, promote or administer peptides that are not FDA approved or have not been included in FDA\u2019s bulk substances lists face significant potential regulatory, civil and even criminal risks. Regulatory and licensing risks Prescribing or compounding peptides that violate FDA rules, such as utilizing bulk drug substances that FDA has not deemed safe and placed into FDA\u2019s bulk substances list, can lead to disciplinary action, fines or revocation of a physician\u2019s state medical license by the state medical board where he or she practices. Gary W. Herschman Mark Yacura In July 2026, the FDA\u2019s Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee (PCAC) voted to recommend adding six peptides to the FDA\u2019s Section 503A bulk substances list, which would enable compounding pharmacies to compound these peptides under strict parameters without concern for current FDA enforcement action. The FDA is, however, not legally bound to follow these recommendations as the PCAC recommendations are only advisory, and the FDA can accept, reject or take substantial time to act on them. On Oct. 14, 2026, FDA issued an interim policy statement to the White House stating it intends to use \u201cenforcement discretion\u201d and would pause enforcing against pharmacies sourcing these six bulk peptide substances for compounding. On Oct. 27, 2026, the White House Office of Management and Budget affirmed the FDA policy proposal. On Oct. 30, the formalized policy was published by the Federal Register. FDA\u2019s enforcement discretion regarding these six peptides will remain in force until final rulemaking regarding their inclusion in FDA\u2019s bulk drug substance list is completed or if and until safety issues regarding any of these peptides becomes apparent to the FDA. Nevertheless, many state boards of pharmacy and state attorneys general have authority under their state\u2019s laws to take independent enforcement actions against unapproved compounded peptides regardless of federal committee recommendations or any FDA policy. Misbranding and distribution Beyond state administrative action risks to physicians, federal prosecutors have presented evidence to grand juries who have indicted licensed physicians for prosecution for ordering peptides that have not been approved by the FDA from overseas or unverified third-party intermediaries and dispensing them to patients. Sourcing or selling unapproved, misbranded or research-use-only peptides can result in federal criminal actions against physicians who prescribe or dispense such peptides or promote them for clinically unproven uses. Thus, purchasing peptides from unverified online vendors or research-only suppliers \u2014 rather than licensed, compliant compounding pharmacies \u2014 places legal liability on the prescriber for any product contamination, mislabeling or purity failures. Fraud, misrepresentation claims If a physician markets unapproved peptides as capable of preventing or treating disease or a medical condition without competent and reliable scientific evidence, the physician is potentially subject to civil fraud, deceptive trade practice or consumer protection lawsuits at both the federal and state level. Medical malpractice Administering or recommending experimental or off-label peptides that lack rigorous, placebo-controlled human clinical trials exposes physicians to malpractice lawsuits if patients experience serious adverse reactions, unexpected side effects or death. Further, physicians have a legal duty to inform patients if a therapy is experimental and the prescribed or dispensed peptide is not approved by the FDA, lacks long-term human safety data or the physician fails to disclose all potential side effects. Failing to adequately document and secure proper informed consent exposes a physician to legal claims if untoward side effects or serious or life-threatening adverse events materialize. For more information: Gary W. Herschman, JD, and Mark Yacura, JD, are members of Baker Donelson and can be reached at www.bakerdonelson.com. Published by: Sources\/Disclosures Source: Expert Submission Disclosures: Herschman reports being a healthcare transaction attorney for more than 30 years and being co-chair of the healthcare transactions group at Baker Donelson. Yacura reports no relevant financial disclosures. Ask a clinical question and tap into Healio AI&#8217;s knowledge base. 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