A New Hampshire high school student who is remarkably knowledgeable about the various harm reduction strategies that are underused to address the overdose crisis engaged Senator Cory Booker (D‑NJ) in a discussion of the subject during a campaign stop in Littleton, NH. The video of the exchange is here.

Senator Booker, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for President in 2020, is a former mayor of Newark, NJ, a city with major drug overdose problems. He had a sophisticated conversation with the student and agreed with her on the need for safe syringe programs. At about 1:50 into the video Booker was asked if he would support needle exchange programs and safe injection sites. He responded that as mayor of Newark he established the needle exchange program in that city and “fully supports” establishing safe injection sites.

As I detail in my Policy Analysis on harm reduction, both needle exchange programs and safe injection sites have been shown for decades to reduce the spread of HIV and hepatitis, reduce overdoses, and increase the number of addicts obtaining rehab. 

While needle exchange programs are legal in the US, and are even promoted by the Surgeon General, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the American Medical Association, many states have anti-paraphernalia laws that inhibit their creation.

Safe injection sites exist in over 120 cities in Europe, Canada, and Australia, and have been in use for over 30 years. One even operates in the US clandestinely, because federal law prohibits safe injection sites in this country. Several cities are attempting to establish safe injection sites in the US, including Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, and New York. In Philadelphia, a nonprofit that includes former Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell on its board is attempting to establish a “Safehouse” in that city, funded entirely with private money, but is being thwarted by the Department of Justice.

While the Senator seemed to wrongly accept the mistaken narrative that the opioid manufacturers are to blame for much of the problem, it is gratifying to learn that Senator Booker has an appreciation for harm reduction in general, and needle exchange and safe injection sites in particular. And, to his credit, he has also expressed enlightened views regarding cannabis legalization. 

As more members of Congress join the growing ranks of mayors of major US cities in endorsing safe syringe programs, momentum will hopefully build for states to remove any remaining obstacles to needle exchange programs and for Congress to remove the federal obstacles to safe injection sites.