Are Peptides Legal in New York? (2026)
New York at a glance
- State controlled-substances law
- N.Y. Public Health Law Article 33 (Sections 3300 et seq.); schedules at Public Health Law Section 3306; criminal offences in Penal Law Article 220 (nysenate.gov)
- Human growth hormone under state law
- Not separately scheduled; the federal statute 21 U.S.C. § 333(e) applies (N.Y. Public Health Law Section 3306) (nysenate.gov)
- Research peptides scheduled by the state
- Chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), Schedule III (N.Y. Public Health Law Section 3306, Schedule III(g)(1)) (nysenate.gov)
- Board of Pharmacy on compounded GLP-1s
- No statement located
- Medical board on peptide prescribing
- No statement located
- GLP-1 by telehealth
- Yes. Public Health Law 2999-cc defines telehealth to include assessment, diagnosis and treatment by electronic means, including audio-only telephone, and imposes no in-person visit before treatment or prescribing a non-controlled drug such as semaglutide. Prescribers are expected to establish the relationship by a real-time audio-visual or audio contact; a questionnaire-only intake is not accepted practice, though no statutory questionnaire ban was located. (nysenate.gov)
- State-level enforcement, 2023 to 2026
- 1 action found
- Last verified
- 28 September 2026, confidence medium
The federal rules that apply in New York, as everywhere
Federal law is the same in every state, and it is where almost all of the legal weight sits. Under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act a product intended to treat a condition or change how the body works is a drug, and an unapproved new drug cannot be introduced into interstate commerce. That rule binds the seller, not the buyer. The FDA's 2026 warning letters to research-peptide vendors say the same thing eleven times over: a "research use only" label does not help when the website, the bundled bacteriostatic water or a dosing calculator shows the product is meant for human use. The Bureau's enforcement tracker lists every letter, case and lawsuit with its source.
Three federal points matter for a reader in New York:
- Human growth hormone is the exception. 21 U.S.C. § 333(e) makes it a federal offence to distribute or possess somatropin for any use not approved by the Secretary of HHS. That statute covers HGH itself, not the secretagogues (sermorelin, ipamorelin, CJC-1295) that prompt the body's own release.
- Compounding is a separate track. A licensed pharmacy may only compound from bulk substances on the FDA's 503A list. BPC-157, TB-500, MOTS-c, KPV, Semax and Epitalon were moved to Category 2 in September 2023, removed from it in April 2026, and recommended for the list by the FDA's advisory committee on 23 and 24 July 2026. No rule has followed as of September 2026, so they still cannot be legally compounded anywhere, including New York. The PCAC vote page has every tally.
- GLP-1 compounding is closing, not opening. The FDA has declared the semaglutide and tirzepatide shortages over, proposed in April 2026 to keep both off the 503B bulks list, and sent batches of letters to telehealth sellers in March and June 2026. Vials sold as "GLP-1 S" or "GLP-3 R" for research are unapproved new drugs in the FDA's view wherever the buyer lives.
What New York law adds
New York's controlled-substances law (N.Y. Public Health Law Article 33 (Sections 3300 et seq.); schedules at Public Health Law Section 3306; criminal offences in Penal Law Article 220) decides whether possessing a compound is a state offence. Peptides only become a state-law problem if they appear in those schedules or in a specific state ban. (nysenate.gov)
Compounds New York has scheduled or restricted
- Chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), Schedule III (N.Y. Public Health Law Section 3306, Schedule III(g)(1)) (nysenate.gov)
Human growth hormone
Human growth hormone and somatropin do not appear in any of New York's five schedules; the anabolic steroid entry covers testosterone-related substances only. HGH is a prescription drug in New York with no state scheduling beyond federal law. (N.Y. Public Health Law Section 3306) (nysenate.gov)
Compounded semaglutide and tirzepatide
No New York Board of Pharmacy statement specific to compounded GLP-1 drugs was located. Licensed New York pharmacies follow the federal 503A and 503B rules, under which the shortage exception for semaglutide and tirzepatide has ended.
Clinics, medspas and prescribers
No New York medical board guidance specific to peptide therapy was located. A New York prescriber who administers BPC-157 or another unapproved peptide is exposed under the state's medical practice act and, since the FDA's 2026 letters, under federal law; the July 2026 advisory vote has not changed that yet.
Buying, possessing and using research peptides in New York
Possessing an unscheduled research peptide is not a New York controlled-substance offence, since Penal Law Article 220 reaches only substances scheduled in Public Health Law 3306, where hCG is the one peptide listed; Education Law 6811 makes selling or holding for sale misbranded drugs a class A misdemeanor, which targets sellers and contains no offence for simple personal possession of a non-controlled prescription drug. (nysenate.gov)
Ordering from a vendor in another state. Almost every research-peptide order into New York is interstate commerce, which is exactly what the FDCA governs. The risk sits with the vendor: the FDA's letters name the seller, and Eli Lilly said in August 2026 it had referred more than 200 sellers to the FDA, the DOJ, state attorneys general and licensing boards. Connecticut's attorney general has already used state consumer-protection law against a "research grade" GLP-1 seller (2025), which is the template other states can copy. The Bureau's vendor scorecard notes which vendors publish batch testing; none of the scored vendors appears in the tracker as of September 2026.
GLP-1 drugs by prescription. Yes. Public Health Law 2999-cc defines telehealth to include assessment, diagnosis and treatment by electronic means, including audio-only telephone, and imposes no in-person visit before treatment or prescribing a non-controlled drug such as semaglutide. Prescribers are expected to establish the relationship by a real-time audio-visual or audio contact; a questionnaire-only intake is not accepted practice, though no statutory questionnaire ban was located. (nysenate.gov) The branded pens are the only fully approved route; compounded versions are now on the wrong side of the FDA's shortage rules.
Sports and employment testing are not a New York law question. Growth hormone secretagogues and GHRH analogues are on the WADA Prohibited List everywhere; a standard workplace panel does not screen for peptides. The national legal guide covers both.
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Build your stack, 2 minutesEnforcement in New York
- 2025-02-19. New York's attorney general signed the 38-state letter urging the FDA to act against counterfeit and research-only GLP-1 sales. (naag.org)
A warning letter, lawsuit or board complaint is an allegation by the body that issued it, not a court finding, unless the entry says otherwise.
Editor's note. No New York attorney general release on compounded or counterfeit GLP-1s, peptides or medspas was found for 2023 to 2026, and no state pharmacy guidance on compounded semaglutide was located.
Frequently asked questions
Is BPC-157 legal in New York?
New York has not scheduled BPC-157, so possessing it is not a New York offence. Federally it is an unapproved new drug: selling it for human use is a violation by the seller, and licensed pharmacies cannot compound it because it is not on the 503A bulks list, despite the advisory committee's July 2026 recommendation. Research vendors sell it under a research-use-only label, which the FDA's 2026 letters treat as no defence when the site shows human use.
Can I get semaglutide or tirzepatide by telehealth in New York?
Yes. Public Health Law 2999-cc defines telehealth to include assessment, diagnosis and treatment by electronic means, including audio-only telephone, and imposes no in-person visit before treatment or prescribing a non-controlled drug such as semaglutide. Prescribers are expected to establish the relationship by a real-time audio-visual or audio contact; a questionnaire-only intake is not accepted practice, though no statutory questionnaire ban was located. Compounded versions are no longer covered by the FDA's shortage exception, and the FDA has proposed keeping semaglutide and tirzepatide off the 503B bulks list, so expect availability of compounded product to keep shrinking.
Is HGH legal in New York?
Only with a valid prescription for an approved use. New York does not schedule it separately, but federal law, 21 U.S.C. section 333(e), makes distribution or possession for any non-approved use a federal offence. Sermorelin, ipamorelin and CJC-1295 are not HGH and fall under the general unapproved-drug rules instead.
Sources
- https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PBH/3306
- https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PBH/2999-CC
- https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/EDN/6811
- https://www.naag.org/press-releases/state-and-territory-attorneys-general-urge-fda-to-take-action-against-counterfeit-and-illegally-sold-glp-1-drugs/
Every New York fact above was checked against the linked source on 28 September 2026. If a statute or board position has changed, email [email protected] with the link and the page will be corrected and dated.