NEEDLE EXCHANGE HELPS PREVENT HIV

The Bush administration's efforts to undermine needle exchange as part
of a global HIV prevention strategy are appalling and deadly
[editorial, Feb. 27]. Look no farther than the president's back yard
for proof of how devastating they are.

Washington, which among the country's large cities has the highest
annual per capita rate of new AIDS cases, is the only jurisdiction in
the United States that is prohibited by Congress from using its
locally raised taxes to fund a needle-exchange program, although
needle exchange has been proved by almost every scientific standard to
be effective at reducing HIV transmission without increasing drug use.

As a result, unlike those in other states and cities, our nonprofit
group, Prevention Works, must raise every cent of its budget from
private donors and foundations -- a task that not only is
time-consuming and difficult but that distracts from life-saving work.

Prevention Works helps ensure that some 3,500 people a year are
provided the tools and counseling to remain free of HIV and other
blood-borne diseases, such as hepatitis C, and to combat their addiction.

Our experience tells us needle exchange works as part of a
comprehensive HIV-prevention strategy. We applaud efforts to ensure
that sound science prevails over partisan politics in the broader
global fight against AIDS, and we encourage Congress and the president
to understand the effect of their shortsightedness on lives in the
nation's capital.

Patsy Fleming

Vice President, Board of Directors

Prevention Works Inc.

Washington