INSITE RESEARCHERS TURN DOWN FEDERAL 'GAG ORDER' MONEY

Safe Injection Site Advocates Call Six-Month Reprieve a Political Move

The organization that conducted the most comprehensive evaluation of
the city's supervised injection site has rejected a contract with the
federal government to conduct further research on the facility.

The government contract offered two weeks ago to the B.C. Centre for
Excellence in HIV/AIDS included a "gag order" on the results of the
research, said Dr. Thomas Kerr, a research scientist with the B.C. Centre.

"We could produce an analysis showing that there's been a huge
reduction in some type of health outcome and then have the health
minister stand up and say once again the research has shown
nothing--and we're supposed to sit there and not say anything," Kerr
explained. "It was a very politically motivated contract, and we just
couldn't do it. We don't work that way."

When Insite opened on East Hastings in September 2003, the B.C.
Centre was awarded a $1.5 million contract funded by the federal
government to conduct research for three years on the facility.

The Centre's researchers discovered Insite reduced the number of
addicts injecting in public, reduced needle-sharing and led to an
increase in referrals to detox programs and addiction treatment. The
findings were published in peer-reviewed journals including the New
England Journal of Medicine, the British Medical Journal, the
Canadian Medical Association Journal and The Lancet.

Despite the findings, federal Health Minister Tony Clement refused
last year to extend Insite's operating licence for an additional
three-and-a-half years.

Instead, Clement approved a 16-month extension until December 2007
and cut off research funding to the B.C. Centre. On Tuesday, Clement
gave Insite another reprieve, extending its licence until June 2008.

Both times Clement announced extensions, he said more research on
Insite was needed, particularly on how the facility affects
prevention, treatment and crime.

The Courier contacted Health Canada to determine which group or
groups will conduct the research, but had not heard back before deadline.

"We've already demonstrated that the opening of the site didn't have
an adverse impact on crime and we also have shown that it didn't send
a wrong message [to attract others to drug use]," Kerr said.
"Twenty-five published studies later, how much more data do you need?"

He argued that not nearly as much research has been done on behalf of
the RCMP's DARE drug prevention program or drug courts, and yet both
programs have been expanded.

The B.C. Centre, however, will continue to conduct its own research
on the site with funding from Vancouver Coastal Health and other
agencies, Kerr said.

He characterized the six-month reprieve as more about politics than
science. He believes the Conservatives don't want to scrap Insite
while they hold only a minority government.

"They're hoping to have a majority and that will give them the power
to go ahead and do what they want, which is roll out their U.S.-style
war on drugs campaign and axe harm reduction programs."

No one has died of an overdose at Insite, which is open seven days a
week from 10 a.m. to 4 a.m. It's the only legal injection facility in
North America.

An average of 600 injections per day occur at the site, according to
Vancouver Coastal Health, which operates the facility in conjunction
with the PHS Community Services Society.

The provincial government provides funding for the site's operation,
which is allowed only because of an exemption under the country's drug laws.