NEEDLE EXCHANGE REDUCES HIV SPREAD

Re: "No cure or common sense after 25 years" (Editorial,
June 6)

Regarding your June 6 editorial, needle exchanges have been shown to
reduce the spread of HIV without increasing drug use. They also serve
as a bridge to drug treatment for an especially hard to reach
population. Drug users are not the only beneficiaries.

The Centers for Disease Control researchers estimate that 57 percent
of AIDS cases among women and 36 percent of overall AIDS cases in the
U.S. are linked to injection drug use or sex with partners who inject
drugs. This easily preventable public health crisis is a direct result
of "zero tolerance" laws that restrict access to clean syringes.

In the interest of containing the HIV epidemic, let's hope New
Jersey's tough-on-drugs politicians acknowledge the drug war's
tremendous collateral damage sooner rather than later.

Robert Sharpe, MPA, policy analyst, Common Sense for Drug Policy,
Washington, D.C.