Supervised injection facilities, which only exist in other countries, encounter roadblocks everywhere they're proposed in the U.S. But as the opioid epidemic rages on, one might open this year.
The Baltimore Health Department has a history of taking risks to help drug addicts. In an effort to prevent outbreaks of HIV and hepatitis, the city was one of the first to open a needle exchange where addicts can swap dirty needles for clean ones. It also made national headlines when the city's health commissioner, Leana Wen, opened the door for any resident to buy naloxone, the life-saving antidote to an opioid overdose.
But there's at least one evidence-based method for helping people with substance abuse problems that Wen is hesitant to propose: supervised injection facilities.
Supervised injection facilities (SIF) are places where addicts can safely use their own illegal drugs under the watchful eye of a medical professional and with clean paraphernalia provided by the city. Also present are people who can connect users with social services, including drug and mental health treatment and housing assistance. Dozens of studies have shown that SIFs reduce overdoses and do not increase drug use or crime in the community.
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12 comments:
We have become a very sick nation , all this will do is to enhance the epidemic . It certainly will tell users we have a cure for you , so keep up the drug use because we will save you.
That SHI# hole Baltimore of course, where else?
Add some bands or a deejay and it will catch on.
Hamsterdam has finally arrived.
Dozens of studies have shown that SIFs reduce overdoses and do not increase drug use or crime in the community.
can any of you read?
Yes we can, but most rational thinking people wouldn't agree with this. These people made this irresponsible decision, why should we the taxpayers have to foot the bill to feed there habits?
Maybe the cops could hag around and arrest them before they shoot up.
Give them all the hot shot and throw them on the heap. We need to start gleaning the weak out of the herd. These flesh ghosts contribute nothing to society. Humanity has become so parasitic self consumed and impulsive. Addictions, Std"s, perpetual debt creating unwanted and uncared for lives. Primitive culture was more altruistic than what we have now. Hyper consumerism has made every life precious and a potential customer no matter how weak. Well now the divide between haves and have not's has expanded and guess what those that have want to keep it and could care less about the have not's. Tough luck it's natural selection.
10:09. Same reason we have to pay for everyone's poor health choices.
Who would expect Baltimore to overcome the opioid crisis when they can't even overcome their bedbug crisis?
Anonymous Anonymous said...
Yes we can, but most rational thinking people wouldn't agree with this. These people made this irresponsible decision, why should we the taxpayers have to foot the bill to feed there habits?
January 13, 2018 at 10:09 AM
And who did your poll on rational people? And where were these "rational people" to begin with? Certainly not the eastern shore. Most on the shore are void of any kind of rationale or common sense.
Regardless, I think "dozens of studies" would trump your opinion or anyone else'.
Now if they took a poll on biases, well everyone on the shore could participate. Such warm helpful people there.
Its a proven fact that lax or even no restrictions on drug use actually reduces drug use and all the bad that goes along with it. That is rational thinking. The idea that the perpetual drug war is impacting drug use is far from the truth. You fail to realize how much of your tax dollar is wasted on the front end chasing petty drug crime. The drug war by definition is insanity. Doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result is what you would call rational?
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