Posted on 05/18/2015 3:25:20 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Volunteers behind a needle exchange in Seattle are now handing out meth pipes to drug users for free.
The program is offered 5 days per week off an alley next to a church in Seattle's University District. It was launched by a group called The People's Harm Reduction Alliance about 2 months ago.
The demand for the free meth pipes has been growing ever since, the alliance's executive director said.
"People kept coming to our program and saying that they were getting syringes because they didn't have access to a pipe," said Shilo Murphy.
About 25-30 meth pipes are handed out each day, Murphy said.
The theory behind the program is that by handing out the pipes, some drug users will rely less on needles, Murphy said. That helps cut down on the risk of certain diseases, he added.
"Whatever the reason is why both parties don't have their own… They wind up sharing. Well, this program has prevented that because all it takes is a cut orally and you've transmitted a disease possibly," said Regg Thomas, a drug user for the past 20 years who currently works with the Urban Survivors Union.
Whether the theory for the program actually works is still up for debate. But according to state law, handing out drug paraphenalia like the pipes is illegal.
Murphy said he knows that.
"And so was syringe exchange 25 years ago. And yet we have syringe exchange and it's proven to be one of the biggest HIV prevention tools for injection drug use in the state," Murphy said.
Murphy said the program, which he claims is the first of its kind in the nation, has reduced some risky behaviors and helped get a number of users tested for Hepatitis C. Public Health of Seattle and King County could not be reached for comment Sunday about Murphy's claims.
On top of handing out meth pipes, Murphy said drug users can also pick up wound care kits and get crucial information about treatment options.
"By engaging them, we gave people self worth… Give back people's desire to live better in life and live better in society," Murphy said.
Even though it's illegal under state law to give someone certain kinds of drug paraphenalia, police said they're more concerned with what's put into the pipes and not necessarily the pipes themselves.
But pick up a fine briar pipe, and they’ll treat you as a pariah.
I’m running low on beer myself. If I run out, I might have to switch to the hard stuff and that’s not healthy. Somebody ping me when a clinic opens up offering free beer.
Breaking Stupid
It's perfectly logical, though, even if heartless. Is a man free to abuse himself? He is, in a perfectly free society. So let him use his freedom. The drug will do a quick job on him. Free supply of the drug only means that the addict has no need to go out and kill people for a couple of dollars. Will that be a suicide? Yes; however on each kiosk there will be a phone number to call in case the addict wants to live. If he doesn't call, it's his choice.
Any other solution belongs to the "Nanny State" class of solutions, where the state or the society needs to protect a person from himself. It doesn't work anyway. So in the end those who are determined to kill themselves with drugs will do that, one way or another. Usually that involves a lot of crime.
Amen!
I think drugs should be OTC and that recreational drug users should be barred from healthcare and any other services. If the Salvation Army or Lutheran Services wants to help them, so be it. But not on taxpayer dime.
I think drugs should be OTC and that recreational drug users should be barred from healthcare and any other services. If the Salvation Army or Lutheran Services wants to help them, so be it. But not on taxpayer dime.
No. Goes for alcoholics
There is lots of lung cancer that is not tobacco related. Largest cause of lung cancer and group is Chinese women who cook with oil and little ventilation.
No I am eliminating by behavior.
I am.
Do they offer pipes with lead from China?
that’s real good of you.
huh?
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