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| 2005 Letter to Ambassador Randall Tobias from the Harm Reduction Community
Dear Ambassador Tobias:
As the US increases its commitment to global HIV prevention efforts, we write to express our concern about recent reports that US officials have questioned the efficacy of needle exchange programs and sought to block support for needle exchange in United Nations resolutions and policy documents. As you know, the sharing of syringes by injection drug users is a major driver of the AIDS epidemic both in the United States and internationally. As researchers, practitioners and representatives of affected populations, we affirm the important role that needle exchange and other sterile syringe programs play in helping to avert the spread of HIV/AIDS. |
| Syringe Exchange in Prisons: The International Experience
Prison syringe exchange programs currently operate in seven countries. Several other countries are on the verge of implementing programs. Syringe exchange programs work to reduce HIV and hepatitis C (HCV) risk and incidence in the prison setting as part of a comprehensive approach that includes education, testing and care, and substance abuse treatment, particularly methadone maintenance. Evidence collected from these programs over the past decade demonstrates that prison syringe exchange is extremely effective at disease prevention, without increasing drug use among prisoners or causing any safety and security problems. |
| Harm Reduction Coalition Statement:
National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, 2007
The HIV/AIDS crisis among African Americans demands increased commitment, innovative strategies, and coordinated action by government, community-based organizations, civic and religious groups, and the African American community. African Americans make up nearly half of all AIDS cases in the United States, and over half of new HIV diagnoses. The majority of women and infants living with HIV are African American. |
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