NEEDLE-EXCHANGE PROGRAMS ARE NEEDED TO COMBAT AIDS

We're glad Atlantic City has finally launched its long-needed
clean-needle program.

Last week, Atlantic City became the first city in New Jersey to
launch a needle-exchange program. The idea of the program is to stop
the spread of AIDS, hepatitis and other deadly diseases that can be
transmitted when illegal-drug users share needles.

We're glad this long-needed program is finally under way in Atlantic
City, and will soon be under way in Camden, Newark and Paterson,
where AIDS kills too many people. New Jersey, foolishly, was the last
state in the nation to allow access to clean needles.

For years, data was accumulated in communities and states around the
nation showing that needle-exchange programs lower the number of new
AIDS cases and that the programs do not lead to more people using
injection drugs such as heroin.

The cost of treating AIDS patients runs in the hundreds of thousands
of dollars for each person. The cost of providing a few free needles
to drug users is just a few thousand dollars altogether. For that
reason alone, no New Jersey taxpayer should see this as a waste of
money. It's a prime example of the old adage that an ounce of
prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Beyond saving health-care dollars to treat destitute AIDS patients,
it's critical that we do all we can to prevent the spread of AIDS and
hepatitis. Needle-exchange programs absolutely accomplish that goal.

The government shouldn't promote illegal drug use. But it should do
all it can to protect the public health and save taxpayer dollars.
Needle-exchange programs make sense for communities where injection
drug use is a real problem and the AIDS rate is spiking because of
dirty needles.