Pubdate: Mon, 23 Mar 1998
Date: March 23, 1998
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Author: J. Thomas Ungerleider MD

In your article on San Francisco's propensity to oppose the state and
federal governments in health matters, you note its support for needle
exchange programs, beginning in 1992, long before they were legally
accepted.

In 1997, the National Institutes of Health issued a consensus
statement on "Interventions to Prevent HIV Risk Behaviors." It stated that
needle exchange programs cause powerful beneficial effects, reducing both
HIV and drug abuse, and that "there can be no opposition to these programs
on scientific grounds."

Perhaps our northern neighbors know a lot more than
we give them credit for when it comes to protecting their citizens.

J. Thomas Ungerleider MD
Los Angeles