Needle Exchange Programs
More than a million people in the United States inject drugs, at a
cost to society (in health care, lost productivity, accidents, and crime)
of more than fifty billion dollars a year. (Holland n.p.). According to the
Department of Health and Human Services, there were 216,000 heroin addicts
nationwide in 1996, the latest year for which statistics are
available.(Wickenheiser n.p.) One third of all AIDS cases are due to
injection drug use. For women, sixty-four percent of all AIDS cases are due
to injection drug use, or sex with partners who inject drugs (Holland n.p.).
Needle exchange programs found around the world as well as one-
hundred and thirteen found within the United States, ...
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majority of needle exchange sites are
storefronts, street exchanges by outreach workers, and scheduled mobile van
stops at designated streets such as AHOPE (Addicts Health Opportunity and
Exchange located in Boston). In addition to providing needles, the programs
distribute alcohol swabs, medicative ointments, vials of bleach,
instructions in the use of condoms and other safer-sex measures, and also
refer thousands of injection drug users to drug abuse treatment programs.
(Knox A1)These products are distributed for free, in hope of decreasing the
amount of HIV/AIDS cases.
Needle exchange programs reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS. As the use
of needle exchange increases, the use of shared needles decreases. A 1994
study of New York City IUDs concluded that "regular participation in these
syringe exchange programs would reduce the risk of HIV infection by
approximately half" (Holland n.p.).
In New Haven, CT, a study tested needles returned to the needle
exchange, and developed a ...
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A1) Over a third of new AIDS
cases stem from injection drug use. AIDS is the leading cause of death
among all Americans aged twenty-five to forty-four. As more and more people
contract HIV through dirty needles, the proportion of all AIDS patients who
are injecting drug users, their sexual partners, or their children is
growing. (Wren 2) In 1995 the cumulative cost in the United States of
treating all people with HIV or AIDS "was $15.2 billion" (Wren 2). Needle
exchange programs have a median annual budget of $169,000, with a range of
$31,000 to $393,000. This translates to $.71 to $1.63 per syringe
distributed. " Free needle replacement is considerably cheaper than waiting
for ...
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Needle Exchange Programs. (2005, February 16). Retrieved November 22, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Needle-Exchange-Programs/22383
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"Needle Exchange Programs." Essayworld.com. February 16, 2005. Accessed November 22, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Needle-Exchange-Programs/22383.
"Needle Exchange Programs." Essayworld.com. February 16, 2005. Accessed November 22, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Needle-Exchange-Programs/22383.
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