Missouri task force discusses needle exchange programs as path out of addiction [Video]

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – This week, Missouri lawmakers discussed a controversial policy aimed at reducing the spread of disease and helping people get free from addiction.

Needle exchange programs, also referred to as syringe service programs, provide clean needles to drug users who might otherwise re-use or share them.

Exchanging needles is the most common way of spreading HIV person-to-person, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Critics believe such programs actually increase drug use by removing the disincentive of danger and serving to normalize the dangerous habit. However, research shows these programs lead neither to an increase in first-time drug users nor to a rise in community drug use.

Studies out of Baltimore and New York City also suggest such programs do not contribute to an increase in crime.

During Wednesday’s meeting of the Missouri Legislature’s Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Task Force heard an update from various agency leaders on the ways their offices are fighting addiction …