Pubdate: Fri, 06 Jun 2008 Source: Victoria Times-Colonist (CN BC) Copyright: 2008 Times Colonist Contact: http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/letters.html Website: http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/481 Author: Iris Gray Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v08.n561.a07.html DIABETES AND ADDICTION: THERE'S MORE TO THE STORY As someone who has had diabetes for almost my entire life, I feel compelled to respond to the recent letters that say drug users should not get free needles because diabetics don't get them. I think this is a selfish attitude, saying "because I don't get this, nobody should get it." Both drug addicts and diabetics should get free needles, but at least we have PharmaCare, and the addicts don't. Addiction is a chronic disease, just like diabetes is. Now, people will read that sentence and say, "I didn't choose to get diabetes, but those people chose to be drug addicts." Wrong. They might have chosen to take drugs the first time, but they did not choose to become addicted. And addiction is not something a person can just recover from overnight. There is no cure for addiction, just as there is no cure for diabetes - -- only treatment. Drug use can lead to diseases like HIV and hepatitis C. The use of the needle exchange can help prevent those diseases, which could save the health-care system a good deal of money down the road -- money that might be used to treat diabetes and other chronic diseases. Iris Gray Esquimalt - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin