Pubdate: Mon, 21 Mar 2005
Source: Oregonian, The (Portland, OR)
Copyright: 2005 The Oregonian
Contact:  http://www.oregonlive.com/oregonian/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/324
Author: Robert Sharpe
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?137 (Needle Exchange)
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v05/n357/a08.html

NEEDLE EXCHANGE HELPS US ALL

The city of Portland should definitely fund needle exchange programs such 
as Outside In. Such programs have been proven to reduce the spread of HIV 
without increasing drug use. They also serve as a bridge to drug treatment 
for an especially hard-to-reach population.

Drug users are not the only beneficiaries. U.S. Centers for Disease Control 
and Prevention researchers estimate that 57 percent of AIDS cases among 
women and 36 percent of overall AIDS cases in the United States are linked 
to injection drug use or sex with partners who inject drugs.

This easily preventable public health crisis is a direct result of zero 
tolerance laws that restrict access to clean syringes. In the interest of 
containing the HIV epidemic, let's hope tough-on-drugs politicians 
acknowledge the drug war's tremendous collateral damage sooner rather than 
later.

ROBERT SHARPE, MPA Policy Analyst Common Sense for Drug Policy Washington, D.C.
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MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager