What message are we sending by implementing needle exchange programs in this country? This has been a highly volatile subject taking heat from both sides. On the one hand, of course we want to lower the risk of HIV/AIDS contraction through infected shared needles of drug users and by all other means. I’m all for public health and less cases of diseases with and without a cure.
On the other hand, is this giving a free pass to IV drug users to continue their abuse, walking around with an “immunity card”, preventing them from being arrested for carrying drug paraphanelia? This attitude is almost like giving up on these people and saying, “if they want to use drugs, let them - just as long as they don’t increase our health care costs with more HIV/AIDS cases.”
I tend to lean more to the side of the latter opinion. What are we saying to these people? The needle exchange program comes complete with clean needles and an “acceptance” of IV drug use. Addiction is not something that becomes okay because clean needles are being used. Addiction is a horrible disease that costs our society billions of dollars in addiction treatment, hospitalization, and incarceration costs. Just because we may be able to decrease a small number of HIV/AIDS cases from infected needle sharing doesn’t mean we’ll avoid HIV/AIDS cases brought on by prostituting for drugs or engaging in reckless sexual behavior while under the influence of drugs. What about crimes committed for money to buy drugs, violence as a result of drug use and black market drug dealing? What about the millions of families and close relationships destroyed on a daily basis because of drug abuse? What are we going to do about these things?
We shouldn’t encourage programs that give addicts exemption from the illegality of carrying around drug paraphanelia, this just perpetuates their addiction. Perhaps this serves the interest of public heath in one area while undermining it in other, arguably more harmful areas. This is supposed to save the lives of drug addicts? They’re killing themselves, HIV or not. If it is the will of our society to save the lives of the millions of Americans struggling with addiction, we need to put more money and effort into drug rehab programs and drug addiction education. Sobriety is the only life-line an addict has, not the availability to get clean needles which they can then turn around and sell for more drug money, or use to overdose. This is ludicrous to me. What real difference is it going to make in the lives of those who struggle with drug addiction to have clean needles to use to get high and continue to kill themselves?
I’m dying to hear an opinion which will make this program somehow make sense to me.
