ADDICTS FAVOR COCAINE

Cocaine was injected more frequently than heroin in the first six months of
the Medically Supervised Injecting Centre at Kings Cross, Sydney, according
to a report to be released today.

The drug was also responsible for almost a third of overdoses at the centre
- - 87 by the end of October. But no deaths had occurred and only two
patients had been taken to hospital after they overdosed on tranquillisers.

The figures are included in the official evaluation report on centre's
first six months of operation, to be presented today at the National Drug
and Alcohol Research Centre's annual symposium in Sydney.

It delivers no conclusions on the success of the controversial centre but
gives the most comprehensive picture so far of its daily operation and the
habits of its clients.

After a relatively quiet start in May, there are now more than 100 visits a
day to the shopfront centre, which has 1503 registered users.

Users had made an average of eight visits, although the number varied from
one to 335.