DAVIS SIGNS NEEDLE COMPROMISE

Gov. Gray Davis signed a compromise bill approving some needle exchange
programs to fight the spread of AIDS and other blood-borne diseases.

Last month, Davis blocked a proposal by Assemblywoman Kerry Mazzoni, D-San
Rafael, that would have simply legalized needle exchange programs, but he
agreed to sign Mazzoni's bill if she rewrote it.

Mazzoni, who represents southern Sonoma County as well as Marin, agreed,
calling the new version "vastly reduced, but a step in the right direction.''

The bill signed into law Saturday exempts local governments and employees
from criminal prosecution for distributing syringes but it requires cities
and counties to use emergency powers to authorize needle exchange programs.

Current state law, with a few exceptions, prohibits the furnishing,
possession or use of hypodermic needles or syringes without a doctor's
prescription.

Four California cities -- Berkeley, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Santa
Cruz -- and Marin County have already adopted emergency ordinances allowing
needle exchanges to help fight AIDS. The bill Davis signed Saturday allows
those programs to continue at the same time as it casts doubt over similar
programs where no state of emergency has been declared.

Sonoma County has quietly supported a volunteer program for several years,
providing money for outreach, training and disposal of used needles. An
estimated 3,200 people participate in Sonoma County's program, and
organizers said they disposed of 120,000 used hypodermic needles in the 12
months ending June 30.

Sonoma County has provided about $30,000 annually for needle exchange
efforts for several years, but county supervisors have never formally
declared a health emergency. County health director Mark Kostieleny said the
county may reconsider the need to declare a state of emergency in light of
the new law.

There are an estimated 10,000 intravenous drug users in Sonoma County. The
needle exchange program, which began in February 1997, is operated by 26
volunteers recruited and trained by the Drug Abuse Alternatives Center, a
nonprofit organization that receives county funds to dispose of the used
needles. Needle exchange proponents greeted the new law, which goes into
effect Jan. 1, with mixed feelings.

"It's half a loaf," said San Francisco Board of Supervisors President Tom
Ammiano. "It's less comprehensive and a lot more cumbersome. I get
frustrated because there is this preponderance of evidence that
needle-exchange programs work. There are lives at stake. ... This is an
important first step, but basically let's just say it's bittersweet.''

Exchange programs are supported by the California Medical Association and
other health professionals, who say shared needles are a major factor in the
spread of HIV and hepatitis.

Davis didn't disagree with the scientific data, but he contended Mazzoni's
original version, which sanctioned needle exchange programs statewide,
created a data collection program and required law enforcement to
participate, and sent mixed messages to children and teen-agers about
illegal drug use.