Vector Science and Therapeutics Corp. Responds to HHS Secretary Kennedy's Call for a Regulated Peptide Marketplace

Vector's cGMP-manufactured Rx peptides, independently tested and Rx-labeled for physician use, are built to the standards of safety, quality and inspected manufacturing that the Secretary described

TORONTO, Oct. 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Vector Science and Therapeutics Corp. (TSXV: PAIN) ("Vector" or the "Company") today welcomed remarks by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who said in an interview on Fox News' "The Will Cain Show" on October 20, 2026 that the administration aims to widen access to peptide therapies through a regulated marketplace. "Americans are going to be buying these anyway," Secretary Kennedy said, according to Reuters. "Our objective was to make sure that there is a regulated marketplace, so that what they're getting is what they claim to be, that is safe, that the factories are inspected."

The Secretary's comments followed reports that HHS had sent a peptides "interim access policy" to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review, as shown in a government website posting on October 15, 2026. According to the Associated Press, which cited two people familiar with the plan, the policy would allow pharmacies to temporarily compound certain popular peptides, including BPC-157, through the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's enforcement discretion. The details of the policy have not been published. Secretary Kennedy has said compounding pharmacies must be allowed to sell peptides because Americans were turning to "gray market" peptides made abroad, including in China, the AP reported.

The risks of the gray market are well documented. The Wall Street Journal reported in October 2026 that a growing number of Chinese companies that have supplied fentanyl precursors to drug cartels are now selling unregulated peptides to Americans. The report cited blockchain analytics firm TRM Labs, which found that at least 50 of the more than 200 fentanyl-precursor sellers it tracks were also selling peptides.

Meeting the Standard the Secretary Described

Vector believes the three tests Secretary Kennedy set out for a regulated marketplace, that a product is what it claims to be, that it is safe, and that the factory is inspected, describe how the Company already operates:

What it claims to be. Vector's cGMP-manufactured Rx peptides, manufactured using pharma-grade Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API), are tested using validated analytical methods for purity, potency, endotoxin levels and sterility, including testing by Verlytix, a third-party, FDA-audited cGMP contract testing laboratory.

Safe. Vector's peptides are Rx-labeled and supplied for physician use, so that a licensed physician, not a social media seller, decides whether a peptide is appropriate for a patient. Vector sources API only from manufacturers on the FDA's import green list or otherwise permitted by the FDA.

Inspected manufacturing. Vector's peptides are manufactured under cGMP, FDA and ISO-compliant conditions, rather than distributed through the research-only channels associated with research-grade material.

Vector is also an early member of the American Peptide Association. The Company believes that as a regulated pathway develops, demand will move away from research-grade and gray market products toward suppliers that can document quality from API to finished vial, and that the decline of the gray market is the logical outcome of the direction of federal policy.

Not Just a Supplier: An Innovator in Peptide Delivery

Vector is not just a peptide supplier; it is an innovator in how peptides reach patients. The Company has filed 15 patent applications covering multi-route peptide and biologic delivery, lyophilized peptide formulations with point-of-care reconstitution, and advanced transdermal delivery. This week, Vector introduced its investigational peptide-matrix microneedle technology, a dissolving microneedle platform that uses the therapeutic peptide as the structural material of the needle itself. The platform, which extends Vector's advanced transdermal delivery program and includes static patches and a handheld roller with replaceable peptide-rich needle cartridges, is designed to deliver peptides through the skin without conventional hypodermic injections. Peptides are typically unstable once in liquid form, which has limited how they can be used. Vector's formulation and delivery technology is designed to preserve peptide stability and potency and to give physicians more controlled ways to deliver peptides beyond conventional injection.

For Physicians

Vector's cGMP-manufactured Rx peptides are made specifically for physicians and are Rx-labeled for physician use. Physicians interested in sourcing Vector's peptides are encouraged to contact the Company at www.vectorscience.co. 

"Having led the Department of Health and Human Services, I know that the government's first job on any medicine is to make sure Americans can trust what goes into their bodies," said Tommy Thompson, Chairman of Vector Science and Therapeutics and former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. "Secretary Kennedy is right that restricting products people already want does not make the demand go away; it pushes patients toward unregulated online sellers and products of unknown origin. A strictly regulated marketplace is the right answer, and it has to rest on the fundamentals: inspected manufacturing, verified ingredients, independent testing and a physician involved in the decision. That is the standard Vector was built to meet, and I believe companies that already work that way will be ready to serve patients as this policy takes shape."

"Secretary Kennedy described exactly what patients and physicians should demand: that a peptide is what it claims to be, that it is safe, and that the factory that made it is inspected. That is how Vector operates today," said Russell Starr, President of Vector Science and Therapeutics. "Many peptides still need more clinical research, and that is exactly why manufacturing quality cannot be optional. Vector's cGMP-manufactured Rx peptides, manufactured using pharma-grade Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API), give physicians a supply they can verify. We believe a regulated market rewards companies that can prove quality, and Vector is ready to supply it."

"Vector entered the peptide space to supply patients with high-quality, safe products, properly tested with validated methods for purity, potency, sterility and endotoxins. We also conduct stability testing of our products in both lyophilized and reconstituted form," said Bill Jackson, Chief Executive Officer of Vector Science and Therapeutics. "All of our innovation in molecular delivery is designed to be transformative, making the delivery of peptides and other therapeutics safer and more controlled. We want to ensure we supply high-quality, safe peptides, delivered in a better way."

About Vector Science and Therapeutics Corp.

Vector Science and Therapeutics Corp. (TSXV: PAIN) is a medical technology company advancing drug delivery technology and cGMP peptide manufacturing for the sports medicine, regenerative medicine, and pain management markets. Vector's cGMP-manufactured Rx peptides, manufactured using pharma-grade Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API), are not research-grade: they are manufactured under cGMP, FDA, and ISO-compliant conditions, Rx-labeled, and sold directly to physicians for physician use, rather than distributed through the research-only channels associated with research-grade material. The Company's product and intellectual property portfolio is focused on advanced transdermal delivery, precision catheter systems, localized pain management, pancreatic oncology, and smart wound care. Vector is headquartered in Mequon, Wisconsin. For more information, visit https://vectorscience.co/. 

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements regarding proposed U.S. federal policy on peptides, the development of a regulated peptide marketplace, the expected shift in demand away from research-grade and gray market products, the Company's ability to supply that market, and the development of the Company's delivery technologies, including the Company's investigational peptide-matrix microneedle technology. Forward-looking information is based on management's current expectations and assumptions and is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied, including the risk that the proposed policy is not adopted, is delayed, is narrower than reported, is temporary, or is changed or reversed; that any permanent change requires federal rulemaking that may take years or may not occur; that changes in policy do not increase demand for the Company's products; that the Company does not obtain required approvals or scale production as expected; and that pending patent applications do not issue or delivery technologies are not successfully developed or commercialized. Secretary Kennedy's remarks did not refer to the Company, and nothing in this release suggests any endorsement of the Company by HHS, the FDA or any government official. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking information except as required by applicable securities laws.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

SOURCE Vector Sciences & Therapeutics