Safe Drug Injection Sites (1 Viewer)

Optimus Prime

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I'm torn on this.

On the one hand it can be seen as enabling users

They say these places help getting people treatment for their addictions, the end goal getting the off drugs

Let's say the treatment aspect doesn't work at all, and nobody who goes there gets off drugs

But if all these sites did was dramatically cut down on overdose deaths would they still be a good idea?

From the Washington Post
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Officials in Seattle on Friday approved the nation’s first “safe-injection” sites for users of heroin and other illegal drugs, calling the move a drastic but necessary response to an epidemic of addiction that is claiming tens of thousands of lives each year.

The sites — which offer addicts clean needles, medical supervision and quick access to drugs that reverse the effects of an overdose — have long been popular in Europe. Now, with the U.S. death toll rising, the idea is gaining traction in a number of American cities, including Boston, New York City and Ithaca, N.Y.

While opponents say the sites promote illegal drug use, supporters say they can keep people alive and steer them toward treatment. They compare supervised injection facilities to the needle exchanges that became popular in the 1980s and 1990s as a way to stanch the spread of HIV and hepatitis C among intravenous drug users.

“These sites save lives and that is our goal in Seattle/King County,” Seattle Mayor Ed Murray (D) said in a statement.

The sites are not currently legal under federal law, according to Kelly Dineen, a professor of health law at Saint Louis University School of Law. A provision of the Controlled Substances Act makes it illegal to operate facilities where drugs are used, she said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a record 33,000 people died from opioid overdoses in 2015. Opioids now kill more people each year than car accidents. In 2015, the number of heroin deaths nationwide surpassed the number of deaths from gun homicides.

In addition to heroin, the deaths are caused by powerful prescription painkillers and fentanyl, a synthetic opiate so potent a tiny amount can kill people within minutes — leaving little time for help to arrive.

“If you want to really bend this curve of death, [safe injection sites are] going to have to be part of the strategy,” said Jessie Gaeta, chief medical officer of the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, which treats many victims of overdose......................

https://www.washingtonpost.com/poli...3c4b4fb5a63_story.html?utm_term=.57056049dafb
 
Yes, plus they are in a controlled environment and not out on the Streets getting killed are getting into accidents killing other people even if they never get help.
 
Guess the planned one in Seattle in original article fell through
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Officials in New York City say the first government-approved supervised drug injection sites in the nation began offering services to people with addiction on Tuesday.

The program, backed by Mayor Bill de Blasio, is part of the city's "harm reduction" strategy designed to reduce an unprecedented surge of overdose deaths.

"After exhaustive study, we know the right path forward to protect the most vulnerable people in our city," de Blasio said in a statement on Nov. 30. "Overdose prevention centers are a safe and effective way to address the opioid crisis."

Dr. Dave Chokshi, NYC health commissioner, told NPR on Tuesday that arrangements have been made with the NYPD and other law enforcement so that people with addiction can use the sites without fear of arrest…….

People with substance use disorder will be able to inject heroin and other illicit drugs under the care of medical professionals. They will also be offered access to addiction treatment and other health care.

Similar sites in Australia and Canada have proven successful at preventing overdoses, reducing drug use in public places, and promoting safer injection practices that reduce the spread of diseases such as HIV/AIDS and hepatitis.

Supervised injection sites have been proposed in cities including Denver, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Seattle. But drug war-era policies and legal challenges have long delayed creation of safe drug consumption programs in the U.S.

Officials in New York City told NPR they are unaware of any legal challenges filed to block this program……..


 

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