FUNDING SOUGHT FOR FREE-NEEDLE PROGRAM

BURLINGTON - At the Green Mountain Needle Co-op, heroin users can come
once a week during a two-hour period and get new, free needles.

Organizers say this access to clean syringes allows the users "who might
otherwise inject heroin with dirty needles " to keep from contracting
hepatitis C and HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

But at a time when heroin use in Vermont is growing exponentially, the
program is relying on donated syringes, said Thomas Dalton, a program
coordinator with the Howard Center for Human Services.

"Right now we have 1,000 syringes donated per month," Dalton said. "That's
been enough, but the number of supplies is not going to meet the demand
with the increases that we're seeing."

While activists say they'll continue to provide the service, they say that
funding the programs remains a source of uncertainty and frustration
because no state money has been allocated and federal dollars cannot be
used to fund needle exchanges.

In 1999, the Legislature approved developing programs that would give drug
users clean needles to inject their drugs in an effort to prevent the
possible transmission of HIV among users who share needles. Gov. Howard
Dean also supported the initiative.

Several years later, the state has two programs in operation - one in
Burlington and one in Brattleboro - but both are running solely on private
grants and donations.

"It has fallen below the radar screen," said Sen. James Leddy, D-Chittenden.

"In many respects, the public preoccupation has been about the larger
heroin problem," Leddy said. "In terms of specific responses, there's been
virtually no response."

It's a source of frustration for Alice Diorio, president of the Vermont
Harm Reduction Coalition, who says that needle exchanges can get people
into other services, including treatment.

"With the heroin problem the way it is, ita s just incredible that we're
not doing more," Diorio said. "Not being able to use federal funds to pay
for needle exchange, the state really should be doing something to help
fund this."

The number of people seeking treatment for heroin addiction in Vermont has
more than doubled since 1999, according to Health Department statistics.
And officials say those figures don't include people going out of statefor
methadone or those not currently seeking treatment.

Dalton points out that in other parts of the country, local and state
governments fund the programs.

"Funding is a very big issue," he said. "There aren't that many places that
fund needle exchange. We're a small rural state where the number of members
we have is tiny in comparison to even a moderate-sized city. There's a lot
of competition out there for funds."

Rod Copeland, who directs the state Health Department's HIV/AIDS program,
said the department believes that needle exchange is an effective approach.

"This program is encouraging more needle exchange, and we have the
responsibility to certify those programs," he said.

Vermont CARES recently received approval from the Health Department to open
a third needle exchange, and the organization plans to focus its efforts in
the Northeast Kingdom and in Burlington, according to Kendall Farrell,
executive director.

However, no request has been made by the Health Department for needle
exchange funding since the programs were approved in 1999, Leddy said.

In a tight economy, the department is trying to curb spending while doing
the least amount of damage to existing public health programs, said John
Howland Jr., assistant to the state's health commissioner.

"What we're trying to do is salvage programs in the face of state revenue
shortfalls," Howland said. "It is not as if there are state dollars lying
around here without a program to spend them on. It's quite the opposite."

The state Health Department also is reaching out to heroin users in other
ways, trying to reach those who are at greatest risk. Ita s also
implementing an aggressive HIV testing system, Copeland said.

Still, those who support needle exchange say they would like to see more
support.

"At this point, it's foolish not to be funding it," Dalton said. "It's much less expensive to prevent HIV or hepatitis C than it is to treat it."

Nearly one-third of all AIDS cases nationally and up to half of all new HIV
infections are directly or indirectly linked to injection drug use,
according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention statistics.

HIV is a not particularly prevalenta right now among Vermonters who
inject drugs, Dalton said. But if HIV becomes prevalent among users, he
said, it would be very easy for it to pass from one to the other.

The needle exchange programs in Burlington and Brattleboro say they're
working to educate users about those risks. Organizers say they're trying
to build trust and to expand the number of people using their services.

"It takes a lot of strength and courage to walk through a door to a needle
exchange," said Lynn Martin, who coordinates the injection drugs program
for the AIDS Project of Southern Vermont in Brattleboro.

"We are hoping that word of mouth is getting the word out there," she said.

The AIDS Project of Southern Vermont received a grant from a private
foundation to buy its initial supplies of needles, Martin said. The program
also received a grant earlier this year from another group.

"It's that kind of help plus individuals in our community who have made
private donations that allows us to continue," Martin said.

Dalton says treating heroin addicts also means expanding the definition of
drug prevention and treatment to include preventing the transmission HIV
and Hepatitis C.

"We have to offer things to people as they're going through that normal
process," said Dalton, who says it sometimes takes time for people to
achieve a sustainable recovery from drug addiction. "Part of what we need
to do is keep them and those around them safe."