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Yes, and they provide many opportunities for drug abuse intervention, food pantry work, one-stop shopping, condom distribution... and even pre/neo-natal care.

Thus, the brief teaching-moment presented even by an anonymous needle exchange is a foothold on the epidemic of drug abuse and the spread of disease. The intravenous user population may not be easy to get a hold of otherwise.

Does needle exchange lead to the facilitation of drug use or recovery and the methadone clinic? I don't know. But it's making the drug use and the drug user safer.

I don't know what you two are trying to get at, but needle exchange programs are usually pretty successful programs

Yea those dulling needles are really a drag. Despite wrecking my insides, I love that my arms stay beautiful without any visible holes. Really though, what an innovative way to control the population on our city's part. Genius.

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Are you having trouble getting clean needles otherwise?

I hope you know that a big part of the danger of a used needle is the fact that the needle becomes dulled quickly, and that you tend to make a nasty tear rather than a clean hole. So even if you found someone to share needles with whom you were also comfortable sharing diseases, (or you felt that you found a bleach-rinsing technique that was adequate) it would still not be a good idea due to the dulling of the needle.

no kidding. CHAI Project in New Brunswick has been advocating for this for a decade or more.

and hopefully, it gets enough support from the state + seed money to expand

seeing as my partner is HIV + ( not from heroin ) a needle exchange program is not only modern but necessary.

Huh? Oh I get it. The question is, How are junkies supposed to patch up the holes in thier clothes? The answer is, needle exchange. Keep your day job.

how are junkies going to patch up the holes in their clothes

Great story -- thanks!

Jersey City's needle exchange program launched July 1. It is the fifth of six eligible pilot programs allowed under state legislation.

Check out the JCI story on it

Jersey City actually has the second highest rate of HIV infection in the entire country.

The national average for injection-linked cases is about 31%; in New Jersey it is 52%.

I think if HIV was spread through dirty martini glasses, this wouldn't be an issue.

you are 100% correct..... a dirty needle won't stop anybody from using

Alright since I see no one has commented on this I will be the first. I think this city is making a big mistake by not being a part of this program. Jersey City has one of the highest HIV rates in the country and dirty needles just help spread this. Jersey City has a large heroin problem and this is the first step to getting some of the addicts treatment. Even if many dont want treatment and just a clean needle it will atleast be saving lives.

Needle exchange program now a moot point after missed deadline

Wednesday, June 27, 2007
By N. CLARK JUDD
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy may have missed getting the city on board a needle exchange pilot program because city officials failed to read the fine print, state officials said.

Initially, Healy - a supporter of needle-exchange initiatives - refused to join the pilot because he opposes a portion of the state plan that he says calls for a van to rove the city to hand out clean syringes and methadone as part of a drug treatment program

"Do you think it's a good idea to have a roving van all throughout the city, like an ice cream truck? Except instead of kids after ice cream, you'd have intravenous drug users?" Healy said.

However, the state says Healy and other city officials are mistaken, explaining the state offered two separate pilot programs: a syringe exchange that the city could design and fund on its own and a drug treatment program with vans that the state would fund.

"You can have a needle exchange program and not offer treatment, but we really encourage them to offer it," said Ellen Lovejoy, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Human Services.

State officials said the deadline to be part of the pilot program was May.

City spokesman Jennifer Morrill said Healy and city Department of Health and Human Services Director Harry Melendez based their decision not to apply on a request for proposals related to the drug treatment program they received from the state.

They did not follow up on the request, Morrill said.

Jersey City is one of eight cities that were eligible for the program that refused to apply. Other cities cited problems like the absence of state funding or the controversial nature of the program itself.

Trenton, initially a part of the program, later withdrew its application. The four cities still in the program - Atlantic City, Camden, Paterson and Newark - have either just passed ordinances authorizing programs or have applications under review by the state, said Tom Slater, a spokesman for the state Department of Health and Senior Services.
City Council President Mariano Vega, a former public safety director for Hudson County, says the needle exchange and the drug treatment grant are both good ideas.

"This is an effective method of doing outreach," Vega said. "We've done this before with the homeless. You don't wait for them to come to you, you go out and reach them."

Tonight, the City Council is expected to introduce an ordinance that would require the Department of Health and Human Services to establish a syringe exchange program.

But state officials say that because no new applications are being accepted for the pilot program, any debate over needle exchange in Jersey City is moot.

"Unless legislation changes or there is new legislation, these are the only programs," Slater said. "The four that we're looking at right now are the only ones being considered."

Downtown Councilman Steven Fulop said the council resolution was introduced by the Healy administration "more to create dialogue," and that many people in city government were hazy on the details of how to move syringe exchange out of resolutions and into reality.

"I think the state is clear on it," Fulop said. "I don't think we are."

%%slug%%POKE21JM%%cat%% DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND SENIOR SERVICES

safety director for Hudson County, says the needle exchange and the drug treatment grant are both good ideas.

"This is an effective method of doing outreach," Vega said. "We've done this before with the homeless. You don't wait for them to come to you, you go out and reach them."

Tonight, the City Council is expected to introduce an ordinance that would require the Department of Health and Human Services to establish a syringe exchange program.

But state officials say that because no new applications are being accepted for the pilot program, any debate over needle exchange in Jersey City is moot.

"Unless legislation changes or there is new legislation, these are the only programs," Slater said. "The four that we're looking at right now are the only ones being considered."

Downtown Councilman Steven Fulop said the council resolution was introduced by the Healy administration "more to create dialogue," and that many people in city government were hazy on the details of how to move syringe exchange out of resolutions and into reality.

"I think the state is clear on it," Fulop said. "I don't think we are."