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Thursday 2 March 2023
States consider ‘safe injection sites’ to prevent overdoses

From Front they can prevent over-
doses, with New York City’s
By JESSE BEDAYN centers stopping more than
Associated Press/Report for 150 in their tracks within
America three months of operating.
DENVER (AP) — In a Colo- The centers also typically
rado mountain town, Chris- include equipment, such
tine Collins injected herself as sterile syringes, and offer
with black tar heroin while resources for drug users to
hanging out with friends in find treatment.
her cozy basement a few Existing studies, such as a
days after her 30th birth- 2021 report from the Bos-
day. Sitting beneath a Hap- ton-based Institute for Clini-
py Birthday sign with hearts cal and Economic Review,
scrawled in colorful sharp- show that sites are linked
ies, she overdosed. to fewer ambulance calls
She awoke to the screams — potentially saving tax
of her friends who fumbled payer dollars — and didn’t
to administer doses of nal- metastasize various crime
oxone, which reversed the rates in neighborhoods of
overdose and pulled Col- operation.
lins back from near death. In Nevada’s Democratic-
She has seen dozens of controlled Legislature a
friends wake up from over- Brian Hackel, right, an overdose prevention specialist, helps Steven Baez, a client suffering proposal to legalize safe in-
doses, and known dozens addiction, find a vein to inject intravenous drugs at an overdose prevention center, OnPoint NYC, jection sites is on the table
more that never did. in New York, Feb. 18, 2022. but has yet to get a hear-
Such scenes of terror have Democrat-controlled Leg- former police officer. sites merely enable illegal ing, one year after a similar
increasingly played out islature are set to discuss But proponents argue it’s drug use and attract the push failed. In New Mexico,
from Denver’s snow-filled the controversial proposal an imperative first step ancillary crime. a similar bill faces unknown
streets to rural towns in Wednesday as the mea- to tackling drug use, with Last year, the Justice De- prospects.
West Virginia, with drug sure faces steep odds many repeating a one-ar- partment told The Associat- Even while a long list of
overdoses killing over an amid broad backlash from gument refrain. ed Press it was “evaluating” healthcare organizations
estimated 100,000 people police, Republicans, and “You can’t enter treatment such facilities and talking have signed on in support
in 2021, according federal lingering questions about if you are dead,” said Dr. to regulators about “ap- of Colorado’s bill — includ-
health official’s latest data. whether the sites are even Joshua Barocas, an associ- propriate guardrails.” The ing the Colorado Nurses As-
That’s roughly one over- legal in the United States. ate professor at the Univer- department did not imme- sociation, Colorado Psychi-
dose death every five min- The idea of sanctioning sity of Colorado who stud- diately respond to requests atric Society and Colorado
utes. the use of drugs including ies substance use disorder. for updated information Behavioral Healthcare
The snowballing death toll heroin and methamphet- “All the data suggests that from the AP this week.Be- Council — the legislation
has pushed lawmakers in amine on these sites — an people are going to do ing open to evaluating the faces an uphill battle.
Colorado, New Mexico and about-face from the long- drugs regardless... All we sites marks a shift from the While Democrats in Colo-
Nevada to consider joining waged war on drugs — has are trying to do is reverse Justice Department’s pos- rado hold majorities in both
New York and Rhode Island garnered stiff pushback. the harm that could come ture under former President chambers, Gov. Jared Po-
in allowing what are often “You’re basically sending from what people are al- Donald Trump, when the lis has vocalized his con-
called “safe injection sites.” a message that, ‘Hey, it’s ready doing.” department fought against cern over the proposal.
Also called “overdose pre- okay to do this,’ which has The trend is growing inter- such a proposal in Penn- The governor’s spokesper-
vention centers,” these are a negative impact on the nationally with centers in sylvania, arguing that such son, Conor Cahill, said in
places where people can users’ health, it encourages Canada, Australia and Eu- facilities violate a 1980s-era a statement Monday that
use drugs under the super- the drug dealer, and then it rope, but in the U.S. ques- law which bans operating the governor “would be
vision of trained staff who still provides that danger to tions remain over whether a place for taking illegal deeply concerned with
could reverse an overdose the rest of the community,” the Department of Justice drugs. any approach that would
if necessary. said Colorado Rep. Gabe will permit such programs Data from sites both in and contribute to more drug
Lawmakers in Colorado’s Evans, a Republican and amid pushback that the outside the U.S. found that use and lawlessness.”q

Midwest could add more ethanol to

gasoline under EPA plan

By SCOTT McFETRIDGE try, which for years has they questioned why the
Associated Press pushed to allow sales of new rules couldn’t begin
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) gasoline blended with 15% this summer.
— Gasoline with higher ethanol during the sum- The American Coalition for
blends of ethanol could mer, which hasn’t been Ethanol said in a statement
be sold year-round in eight allowed because of con- that the group appreciat-
Midwestern states begin- cerns that it would worsen ed the EPA’s proposal but
ning in 2024 under a rule smog during hot weather. argued there was no rea-
proposed Wednesday by The industry and members son to wait until 2024 . The
An American Ethanol label is shown on a NASCAR race car the Environmental Protec- of Congress welcomed the group accused the agen-
gas tank at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, Nov. tion Agency. EPA’s proposal, which had cy of delaying the action
1, 2014 The proposed rule is a vic- been requested by gover- because of pressure from
Associated Press tory for the biofuels indus- nors in the eight states, but the petroleum industry.q