NEXT HURDLE IN AIDS PREVENTION IS SYRINGE EXCHANGE

As an early local supporter, I am delighted that Luzerne County has caught
up with other parts of the country by establishing a methadone clinic. Now
it is time for public attention to turn to the exploration of a syringe
exchange as the next important public health initiative.According to the
federal Center for Disease Control, 35 percent of all new AIDS cases
reported in the USA were injection-related during 1999. Furthermore, 37
percent of all new AIDS cases among women and 37.6 percent of all new AIDS
cases among children under 13 were injection-related.

Both HIV/AIDS and hepatitis are spread by heroin users through the sharing
of dirty needles and, in turn, to the general public through sexual
contact. The result is that the loved ones of all of us are endangered.

Unfortunately, Pennsylvania is one of the few states that prohibits the
sale of syringes in pharmacies without a prescription, thus necessitating
re-use.

In 1998, Donna Shalala, then-Secretary of Health and Human Services,
reported to Congress: "A meticulous scientific review has now proven that
needle exchange programs can reduce the transmission of HIV and save lives
without losing ground in the battle against illegal drugs." In the same
year, Dr. Harold Varmus, then-Director of the National Institutes of
Health, proclaimed: "An exhaustive review of the science in this area
indicates that needle exchange programs can be an effective component in
the global effort to end the epidemic of HIV disease."

To reduce the spread of diseases and to provide a bridge to active and
out-of-treatment drug users, both Philadelphia and more recently Pittsburgh
have exercised their right under state law of declaring a health emergency
and are sponsors and funders of syringe exchanges. Other cities have
permitted syringe exchanges to operate.

As a supporter of existing exchanges, I am acquainted with the many
services they provide and how they refer clients to medical facilities when
the client is finally ready to seek help.

I would encourage civic leaders to tour syringe exchanges in Philadelphia
and other cities and report back on their findings. It took over 20 years
to bring a methadone clinic to Luzerne County, let us not allow
life-preserving syringe exchanges to suffer a similar delay.

Progress in public health measures is an ethical imperative and it also
reduces the cost of health care and is an essential building block for
local economic development.

Reliable information on syringe exchanges and other drug related issues can
be found at www.DrugWarFacts.org

Robert E. Field

Co-chair, Common Sense for Drug Policy

Lancaster