Nevada regulators last year fined three people involved in proposing peptide injections at an anti-aging conference in Las Vegas, where two women became seriously ill after the treatment.
Last month, the Nevada Board of Pharmacy imposed $10,000 fines on doctors and pharmacists who are licensed in California but not authorized to practice in Nevada. The agency imposed a $5,000 fine on a third man who described himself as an “integrative health coach” but did not appear to be a licensed medical professional.
The Board of Pharmacy also imposed a $10,000 fine on a Texas-based private membership association that officials say mailed the peptides to Nevada. The group, Forgotten Formula, asserts its constitutional right to conduct private transactions with its members, arguing that those transactions occur “beyond the purview” of state commercial regulations.
The quote stems from an incident in July at the “Revolution Against Aging and Death” festival, hosted by an Arizona-based organization that promises a path to “unlimited longevity.” Dr. Kent Holtorf, an anti-aging medicine practitioner based in El Segundo, California, operated a booth at the festival offering alternative health treatments such as peptide injections. Peptides are short amino acid chains that have exploded in popularity thanks to claims that they can fight aging and chronic disease.
The commission alleged that Forgotten Formula mailed the peptides to the casino resort hosting RAADFest and marked the package as “brought to the attention of Dr. Kent Holtorff.” The shipment amounted to “unlicensed wholesale of narcotics,” the commission cited.
A director of Forgotten Formula told ProPublica that the association is not participating in the festival and does not provide peptides available to the public.
Two women left the conference in ambulances after being injected with peptides at Holtorff’s booth, but had to be intubated to help them breathe. Then they recovered.
The Pharmacy Commission was unable to determine why the women became ill, such as whether the injections were contaminated or whether the women themselves had a reaction to the peptide. Investigators were unable to test the serum.
“We have tried, but we have not been able to get the product,” said David West, executive director of the board.
Although the Food and Drug Administration has approved many peptide-based drugs to treat serious diseases such as diabetes and cancer, peptide therapies used to prevent aging and regenerate health are largely unregulated. (Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is a strong supporter of peptides.) The FDA allows compounding pharmacies to dispense some peptides, but it lists 19 of the most popular peptides as posing a “significant safety risk.” Compounding pharmacies are prohibited from dispensing drugs on the list. As a result, many dangerous peptides are sold on a burgeoning gray market, including directly to consumers by entities in the United States and abroad that circumvent FDA regulations.
The shots given to both women at the Las Vegas convention contained at least one peptide that the FDA has warned poses a safety risk, according to pharmacy board documents. Kennedy recently said that the FDA plans to reclassify 14 of the currently listed peptides as unsafe, which could allow compounding pharmacies to begin dispensing them.
Holtorf, who did not respond to repeated attempts to contact him, was fined for practicing in Nevada without a state license. Hang Bao Nguyen, the pharmacist accused of mixing peptides from both women and administering serum to one, was also charged with similar violations. Nguyen works at Holtorf’s clinic, according to Holtorf’s website. He did not respond to requests for comment.
Michael McNeil, an “integrative health coach” and director of education for Integrative Peptides, a company Holtorff founded, was accused of prescribing or recommending a peptide cocktail to one of the women. West said McNeil does not appear to have a medical license. McNeil did not respond to requests for comment.
In July, Holtorff told ProPublica that he did not believe the peptides were the cause of the women’s illnesses and said he had asked an artificial intelligence app to analyze the incident. He did not specify what he determined was caused by the app. He apologized for the situation and said he was “re-evaluating everything we do” to keep patients safe.
West said the commission notified the California board that authorized fines for Holtorf and Nguyen so it could consider additional punishment. The FDA has also been notified.
Michael Blake Faibash is the co-founder and primary trustee of Forgotten Formula, which the board accused of unauthorized wholesale of pharmaceutical products. He said the Pharmacy Board’s regulations are necessary to regulate the public trade, but they do not apply to the association because it only provides services to contracted members. He said such member-to-member activities are protected by the First and 14th Amendments. In a letter to ProPublica, he said Holtorf, whose peptide company is listed as a partner on Forgotten Formula’s website, is working with RAADFest in an official medical capacity and not as a member of the association. The woman who fell ill was also not a member of the association, Faibash said.
“Dr. Holtorff’s booth at RAADFest was a public commercial activity,” Fybash said in the letter. The Forgotten Formula Private Member Association “did not provide the materials for public commercial use or public distribution. If Dr. Holtorf utilized any materials in his public professional activities, it would represent a personal choice to apply private member resources to another public professional activity, which is beyond the control or responsibility of FFPMA.”
Mr. Fiveash did not directly answer questions about whether the association mailed the peptides to Mr. Holtorf. He also shared video testimonials from Forgotten Formula members, including children and adults suffering from serious illnesses such as cancer, Lyme disease, diabetes and cirrhosis, who have been helped by the association’s products.
He challenged the premise that the women were made ill by the peptides. “Without comprehensive toxicology, a complete medical history, and an analysis of all substances and treatments administered that day, attributing causation to a peptide is nothing more than speculation disguised as reporting,” he said. “While any adverse events are concerning, we hope both patients make a full recovery.”
Laura Tucker, an attorney for the Board of Pharmacy, said this is the first time the board has seen a private membership organization make such a legal claim, but stressed that mailing drugs to the state without Nevada’s permission is a violation of state law. He added that either party can challenge the citation to the board.
“Of course, everyone is free to make legal claims before the board,” she said.
