Pubdate: Fri, 18 May 2001
Source: New York Times (NY)
Copyright: 2001 The New York Times Company
Contact:  http://www.nytimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/298
Author: Reuters

REPORT BACKS NEEDLE EXCHANGES

Needle-exchange programs, a debated method of preventing transmission
of the AIDS virus H.I.V., are growing in number and effectiveness, a
federal study has found. The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention found 131 of the programs nationwide in 1998, up from 68 in
1994 and 1995. The report concluded that the programs, in which drug
users swap used needles for sterile ones, "are an effective public
health intervention that reduces transmission of H.I.V. and does not
encourage the illegal use of drugs."
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