The Politics of Syringe Exchange Part 1 of 4: Facts & Stats

by: Brian McGinnis

Tue May 09, 2006 at 08:25:19 AM EDT

Here is some of the crucial text from the bill, to help readers understand exactly why this bill is absolutely neeeded, and right now. All emphasis (bold, italics) is mine:

2. The Legislature finds and declares that:
a. New Jersey, in comparison with other states nation wide has the highest rate of HIV infection among women, the third highest pediatric HIV rate, the fifth highest adult HIV rate, and a rate of  injection-related HIV infection that is almost twice the national average

b. About one in every three persons living with HIV or AIDS is female;

c. Sterile syringe access programs have proven effective in reducing the spread of HIV, hepatitis C and other bloodborne pathogens without increasing drug abuse or other adverse social impacts; yet New Jersey remains one of only two states nationwide that provide no access to sterile syringes in order to prevent the spread of disease

d. Every scientific, medical and professional agency or organization that has studied this issue, including the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Medical Association, the American Public Health Association, the National Academy of Sciences, the National Institutes of Health Consensus Panel, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the United States Conference of Mayors, has found sterile syringe access programs to be effective in reducing transmission of HIV; and

e. Sterile syringe access programs are designed to prevent the spread of HIV, hepatitis C, and other bloodborne pathogens, and to provide a bridge to drug abuse treatment and other social services for drug users; and it is in the public interest to encourage the development of such programs in this State in accordance with statutory guidelines designed to ensure the safety of consumers who use these programs, the health care workers who operate them, and members of the general public

The CDC put out a report on intravenous drug users and SEP a few years ago, which you can access for yourself here. Among the findings:

-The average intravenous drug user injects about 1,000 times a year
-SEP have been shown to be an effective way to link some hard to reach intravenous drug users with important public health services
-Citing the National Institutes of Health Consensus Panel, "Studies show reduction in risk behavior as high as 80% with estimates of a 30% or greater reduction in HIV in intravenous drug users"

An article from the San Francisco AIDS Foundation also provides some crucial facts:

-Two  Kaiser Family Foundation surveys also found majority support for needle exchange : a majority of registered voters (June 1997), and 66% of all Americans (March 1996)
-The National Institutes of Health report, published in February 1997, states that needle exchange does not increase drug use; that individuals in areas with needle exchange programs have increased likelihood of entering drug treatment programs; that needle exchange does not encourage non-drug users, particularly youth, to use drugs; and that there is no increase in used needles discarded in public spaces.