CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The benefits and future of needle exchange programs was the subject of a roundtable discussion Tuesday, in which members of the Charleston City Council and health care policy leaders spoke about hypodermic needle use for illegal drugs.
The meeting comes following a March 19 vote by Charleston City Council to delay a vote on a bill that would have recriminalized hypodermic needles for the use of illegal drugs. Charleston Mayor Danny Jones and law enforcement leaders supported the measure, citing an increasing public presence of needles.
In the month since that decision, Charleston Police Chief Steve Cooper handed down new regulations limiting the type of needles that could be used, the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department suspended its program and Jones made a $5,000 donation to HealthRight in support of its needle exchange program, which uses retractable needles.
All of the health policy experts agreed maintaining needle exchange programs in Charleston is essential to minimizing the risk of infectious diseases, noting lawmakers have to put aside any fears about risks in order to create the best program possible.
“We want to make whatever modifications we feel like we can make and still feel like we can maintain the integrity of the program,” said Brenda Isaac, president of the Kanawha-Charleston Board of Health. “I think it was made clear that was a desperate need for this program in addition to what HealthRight is doing.”
Charleston City Council President Tom Lane, R-at-Large, said the main concern is making sure needle exchange programs do not add to a community’s health concerns.
“What we took away from the meeting is that the health care community is all on the same page on this issue,” he said.
Lane added because so much has happened since the March council vote, the chamber may move to delay a vote or withdraw the bill. If the bill is pulled, Cooper’s regulations would still be in effect.
Law enforcement officials were invited to the meeting but did not attend. Jones said he and law enforcement will hold a separate meeting on the issue closer to the vote.
“People don’t take seriously enough the opioid epidemic and the fact that we are in a crisis,” Isaac said. “We just can’t pretend that it is going to go away if we are not giving any needles or it is going to go away if we close the doors to the health department.”
A vote on the bill affecting the needle exchange is scheduled to take place May 21.