On Oct. 27, 1986, President Ronald Reagan signed the the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986.  The Act changed the system of federal supervised release from a rehabilitative system into a punitive system; prohibited controlled substance analogs; and enacted mandatory minimum sentences for drugs, including marijuana.

The law amended the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to make it a criminal offense to distribute or to possess with the intent to distribute any anabolic steroid other than in accordance with a physician’s order for the purpose of treating disease. Authorizes the imposition of longer prison terms if distribution or intent is directed to an individual under age 18.

The legislation was passed by the U.S. Congress with amendments on October 22, 1988.