States allow needle exchanges.

• Position: On First Reading - Brief Article

Though other public health crises may top the list for a time, HIV has never gone away. And some states are determining that the AIDS epidemic may warrant a loosening of the restrictions they once placed on possession of hypodermic needles.

The federal government has said that needle exchange programs--where injection drug users exchange used needles for sterile syringes--does not promote drug abuse. Since then, state lawmakers have moved to legalize the purchase and possession of syringes, which was illegal in some states, and authorize needle exchange programs.

The most current trend in legislation is to allow the legal purchase of syringes from pharmacies. Last year, New Mexico joined nine other states in allowing buyers to purchase syringes from pharmacies without a prescription. The New Mexico law allows users to buy an unlimited number of syringes. Most other states allow sale of a limited number ranging from 10 to 30. Laws allowing possession of syringes usually go hand-in-hand with those legalizing purchase. Several more states--15 in all--allow the possession of clean, unused needles.

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