FREE CRACK PIPES HANDED OUT TO DRUG ADDICTS IN BID TO SLOW SPREAD OF DISEASE

VANCOUVER - A support group for drug users began distributing hundreds of
free crack pipes over the weekend in an initiative they say will help slow
the spread of disease among drug users.

Over 500 crack kits were handed out Friday and the Vancouver Area Network of
Drug Users plans to hand out hundreds more in the coming days, said network
president Rob Morgan on Sunday.

Now the group is looking for public funding to maintain their crack kit
program.

"In the same way as handing out needles, these kits advance harm reduction
and prevent the spread of HIV and hepatitis C," said Morgan, a
self-described crack cocaine addict.

Each kit contains a glass pipe, mouth pieces, condoms, alcohol swabs,
matches, and smoking instructions.

The money to buy the crack kits came from private organizations and street
donations. Morgan said drug users are asked for a minimum one dollar
donation for the kits.

"But we're not going to turn people away," he said.

The Rock Users Group -- a branch of VANDU -- spearheaded the project and has
asked the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority to provide funding for the
kits.

But the authority maintains that more research is needed to determine
whether the crack kits have potential health benefits before it supports
such an initiative.

RUG has also been lobbying for a crack smoking room to be included in the
city's controversial safe injection site, the first of its kind in North
America.

There is no legal provision to allow safe inhalation sites, according to the
Vancouver Coastal Health Authority.