The two sides in a debate over whether the federal government should take part in needle exchange programs pressed their views Wednesday amid vague signals that the Clinton administration might consider lifting a nearly 10-year ban.
The White House has officially been silent on the issue, despite having since February a Centers for Disease Control review that said needle exchange “can be an effective strategy” for preventing the spread of AIDS.
But since the CDC review was released, several senior administration officials, including Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala and presidential AIDS adviser Sandra Thurman, have indicated they are open to reconsidering the ban.
“I don’t think President Clinton wants to walk down that path (lifting the ban),” said Bob Maginnis, a senior policy adviser at the Family Research Council. “But he’s certainly being pressured.”
The Family Research Council, a conservative policy group based in Washington, released a poll Wednesday that found a majority of those surveyed said needle exchange programs were an “irresponsible” way to control the spread of AIDS.
The group’s poll underscored deep divisions over such programs. The controversy pits AIDS activists and many medical professionals–who say the programs are a cheap and effective way to limit the spread of AIDS–against others, including some religious and “pro-family” organizations, who contend that needle exchange programs encourage people to use drugs.
Citing studies they said proved that needle exchange programs effectively limit the spread of AIDS, supporters of the exchanges mounted their own offensive Wednesday.
“Needle exchange is the magic bullet in HIV prevention,” said Jim Graham, executive director of the Whitman-Walker Clinic in Washington, D.C. “It is the least expensive and most effective form of prevention.”
Needle exchange programs, which distribute clean needles to intravenous drug users in exchange for new ones, have recently received endorsements from several prominent organizations, including the American Medical Association and the National Conference of Mayors.
As the law was written, the HHS secretary can lift the ban on federal involvement in needle exchanges if evidence shows the programs curb the spread of AIDS and do not “encourage” drug use.
A Shalala spokesman said the secretary was still considering her options.
“Congress has set some hurdles, and we are taking a look at the hurdles to see whether certain conditions are met” that would allow the secretary to act, said the spokesman, Victor Zonana. He would not elaborate.
There are currently more than 100 needle exchange programs–most of them privately funded–in operation across the country. A San Francisco program was recently awarded a $1 million grant by a billionaire financier, George Soros.
Supporters of the programs estimate that about 14 million syringes were exchanged last year. The devices contain needles that retract after use.
