Pubdate: Wed, 12 Dec 2001
Source: Honolulu Advertiser (HI)
Copyright: 2001 The Honolulu Advertiser, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.
Contact:  http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/195
Author: Robert Sharpe
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n2048/a05.html
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?137 (Needle Exchange)

ACCESS IS CRITICAL IN FIGHT AGAINST AIDS CRISIS

One possible solution to the NIMBY reaction caused by Chinatown's needle 
exchange program is syringe deregulation. Allow drug users to purchase 
clean syringes in pharmacies rather than a centralized exchange.

Regardless of the distribution mechanism, access to clean needles is 
critical. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 
58 percent of AIDS cases among women are linked to injection drug use or 
sex with partners who inject drugs. Overall, 36 percent of AIDS cases in 
the United States can be traced back to intravenous drug use. This easily 
preventable public health crisis is a direct result of zero tolerance 
policies that restrict access to clean syringes. Punitive drug laws 
compound the drug problem by driving use underground. Would alcoholics even 
seek help for their addiction if doing so were tantamount to confessing to 
criminal activity? Would putting every incorrigible alcoholic behind bars 
and saddling them with criminal records prove cost-effective? In the 
interest of containing the HIV epidemic, let's hope America's 
tough-on-drugs politicians acknowledge the drug war's tremendous collateral 
damage sooner rather than later.

Robert Sharpe

The Lindesmith Center-Drug Policy Foundation
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