What Colorado health organizations think about Pueblo's needle exchange ban
Health organizations across Colorado have expressed disappointment with city council's decision to ban syringe access programs in Pueblo, but have pledged to continue supporting the city, community and nonprofits in their fight against addiction.
In a letter to city council submitted before the 5-2 decision that banned needle exchange programs from operating in city limits, Dr. Ned Calonge, chief medical officer for the state of Colorado, wrote that syringe access programs, otherwise known as syringe exchange programs, provide resources to address the social determinants of health that impact the well-being of both individuals and communities.
Echoing arguments made by the leaders of Pueblo's programs and their supporters before and during Monday's council meeting, Calonge wrote that the programs "do not increase illegal substance use or crime."
"In fact, new users of SEPs are five times more likely to enter drug treatment and three times more likely to reduce and/or stop using drugs than those who don’t use the programs," Calonge wrote. "As overdose rates continue to rise due to the unpredictability of the illicit drug supply, SEPs are the primary access point for overdose prevention education and tools such as naloxone (an overdose reversal medication). SEPs reduce overdose risk and ultimately save lives."
Calonge detailed the cost-saving benefits created by the presence of the programs, "in addition to prevention of harm and death."
"A sterile syringe that costs 10 cents can reliably prevent costly HIV and Hepatitis C transmission, effectively saving communities public and private dollars associated with treatment," Calonge wrote. "SEPs also provide safe methods of syringe and other biohazard disposal, increasing public safety, reducing accidental needle sticks to first responders, and reducing public cost for hazardous waste mitigation."
In his letter, Calogne predicted dire consequences if city council were to ban the programs.
"Prohibiting syringe access in the city of Pueblo could potentially lead to outbreaks of infectious disease, increased health care and emergency costs, overdose deaths and service interruption for the hundreds of individuals who rely on the multitude of services provided by these organizations.," Calonge wrote. In addition, studies have shown an eight-fold increase in improperly discarded syringes in communities without SEPs compared to those with SEPs."
Despite the ban, the Colorado Department of Health and Environment will "continue to act as a resource" for the city, community and organizations moving forward, according to a department spokesperson.
"Colorado local governments have the authority to enact policy decisions in their communities within the parameters of state and federal law," Kristina Gaffny, deputy communications director for CDPHE, said in a statement to the Chieftain.
"Our role as the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is to ensure that communities, organizations, and local governments have the evidence-based resources they need to improve the environmental and public health of their region. We will continue to act as a resource for the City of Pueblo and its service providers to reduce the spread of infectious diseases and mitigate other harms associated with contaminated needles."
Colorado Health Network, the parent company of Access Point, which runs exchange programs across the state including in Denver, Colorado Springs, Fort Collins, and, until Monday's vote, Pueblo, told the Chieftain that the move by city council has made it more difficult for nonprofits to connect with people struggling with addiction.
"Data presented to council showed that Access Point, our syringe access program operating in Pueblo since 2014, has helped lower the rate of HIV transmission among injection drug users and has lowered the rate of overdoses thanks to our harm reduction education and supplies provided to program participants.," said Mike Mansheim, chief strategy officer for the network. "We remain willing to work together to seek solutions that are based on best-practices and not driven by fear and stigma against some of our state’s most marginalized citizens."
When reached for comment by the Chieftain, Pueblo Department of Public Health and Environment Director Randy Evetts simply stated that “As Pueblo and the nation continue to experience the most significant substance use and overdose crisis in history, PDPHE is committed to working with the City Council and the harm reduction agencies to identify evidence-based approaches that will lead to higher rates of drug treatment and recovery.”
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This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Why Colorado health organizations opposed Pueblo's needle exchange ban
