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Alert:
Support
California
Syringe
Decriminalization
Bill
3/26/99
California readers are urged
to contact their assemblymembers in support of AB 518. According
to the HIV Advocacy Network, the bill, introduced by assemblymembers Kerry
Mazzoni (D-Marin) and Kevin Shelly (D-SF), would amend California state
law that prohibits distribution of syringes without a prescription in order
to provide legal protection to needle exchange projects operating within
certain parameters outlined in the bill. Under AB 518, needle exchange
programs would be established only in jurisdictions that choose to enact
them and would be designed and implemented with input from the communities
in which they are established. Syringe prescription laws drive up
the spread of HIV by reducing the availability of sterile syringes, thereby
increasing syringe sharing among injection drug users.
Please fax your letter of
support for AB 518 by March 31 to assemblywoman Kerry Mazzoni at (916)
319-2106 and to the assembly Health Committee at (916) 319-2197.
Please also fax a copy to the San Francisco AIDS Foundation at (415) 487-3089,
and send a copy to DRCNet at (202) 293-8344 (fax) or e-mail to [email protected].
Points for your letter:
-
Support AB 518 (Mazzoni/Shelley).
-
Needle exchange is a proven
prevention tool that effectively decreases the number of HIV infections
among injection drug users without increasing drug use or criminal activity.
-
Injection drug use continues
to be the second leading cause of IV transmission in the state. As
of December 1998, over 20,000 AIDS cases had been reported among IDUs in
California.
-
Needle exchange is one of the
most cost-effective interventions. The cost of a new syringe is as
little as 10 cents while the lifetime cost of treating a person with AIDS
is over $119,000.
-
Needle exchange programs offer
an opportunity to provide prevention counseling and make referrals to medical
care, drug treatment, HIV testing and other services.
-- END --
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Issue #84, 3/26/99
Announcements | New Report Finds One Million Americans Incarcerated for Non-Violent Offenses | IOM Findings Strengthen Administrative Challenge to Repeal Marijuana's Prohibitive Status | Alert: Support California Syringe Decriminalization Bill | American Pharmaceutical Association Adopts Syringe Deregulation Position | Vancouver Needle Exchange Study Clarifies Previous Study's Results | Newsbriefs | Editorial: Rolling Back the Tide
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