HEALTH BOARD URGED TO BACK NEEDLE EXCHANGE

Myra Johnson remembers the day her life changed forever. A nurse knocked on
her door. She brought bad news.

"She came to tell me that I had HIV," Johnson said.

Johnson said she contracted the disease from her late husband, who she said
was an intravenous drug user.

On Monday, Johnson urged the Guilford County Board of Health to support an
effort to allow needle exchange programs in North Carolina.

Currently, needles are classified as illegal drug paraphernalia. There are
no government-run or officially-sanctioned exchange programs in the state,
although there are two that operate despite the legal obstacles, including
one in High Point.

A bill before the General Assembly would set up state-funded exchange
programs in three undetermined counties and evaluate their effectiveness.
The programs, in which participants receive clean needles in exchange for
used needles, would be immune from drug paraphernalia laws.

Supporters say needle exchange programs save lives, preventing the spread
of diseases such as HIV and hepatitis. They can also save money by
eliminating the need for treatments, proponents say.

Not everyone is convinced that the programs are a good idea. Some say the
efforts actually encourage more drug abuse.

Evelyn Taylor, a longtime public housing resident who described herself as
a staunch foe of drugs, said she is no fan of needle exchanges.

"We're not helping them to get off it, we're helping them to stay on it,"
she said.

The solution is to combat drug use by improving treatment programs, she said.

One of the state's two existing needle exchange programs is active in the
Triad. The High Point-based Wright Focus Group has distributed needles in
Guilford County for several years.

Although it is illegal for anyone to possess drug paraphernalia, law
enforcement agencies have not cracked down on the group, allowing it to
carry out its mission.

Jordan Beedoe, the group's executive director, said that about 100 drug
users participate in the program. The program is essential in preventing
the spread of disease, he said.

"People should not concentrate on the needles," he said. "People should
concentrate on saving lives."

Health board members sounded mixed notes and did not take a vote on whether
to support the concept. Some raised questions, such as whether the
possibility of contracting a disease serves as a deterrent to drug use.

Board members said they could use more information and will continue to
look at the idea.

"It's worth hearing more perspectives," said board member Jim Wells.

The bill allowing the needle exchange program was introduced in the state
House. It would allocate $550,000 each year for the next two years to
create and evaluate the programs.