This issue brief explores syringe services programs (SSPs) and how they can improve public health. The paper describes the benefits of SSPs such as reduced rates of HIV and hepatitis C infections among people who use drugs, increases in SSP participants engagement in substance use disorder treatment, and the lack of relationship between SSP programs and increased criminal activity. Continue reading
Resource Tag: Harm Reduction
Syringe exchange
Naloxone distribution
Safe injection sites
New Mexico Statewide Standing Order for Registered Pharmacist Naloxone
The New Mexico statewide standing order authorizes registered pharmacists in the state to dispense naloxone to any person who uses an opioid, regardless of how the opioid is used or obtained, or to any person in a position to assist a person at risk of experiencing an opioid overdose. Continue reading
Federal Grantees May Now Use Funds to Purchase Fentanyl Test Strips
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that federal funding may be used to purchase rapid fentanyl test strips (FTS). FTS can be used to determine if drugs have been cut or mixed with fentanyl which greatly increases the risk of overdose death. Continue reading
Syringe Services Programs: A Technical Package of Effective Strategies and Approaches for Planning, Design and Implementation
This resource supports successful planning, design, implementation, and sustainability of syringe service programs (SSPs). The document describes 5 main strategies for SSP implementation and service delivery that are know to be effective: Continue reading
Needle Exchange Resources: Infectious Disease Elimination Act of Florida
This document produced by the Florida Department of Health provides a list of resources to support syringe exchange programs as part of implementation of the Florida Infectious Disease Elimination Act. Continue reading
Fact Sheet: Infectious Disease Elimination Act of Florida
This 2 page fact sheet explains the state of Florida’s Infectious Disease Elimination Act (IDEA), which allowed counties in the state to establish syringe exchange programs for people who use drugs. The resource describes the problem IDEA is intended to solve, explains the legislation, and describes the benefits of syringe exchange programs. Continue reading
Infectious Disease Elimination Act of Florida
This site details the state of Florida’s Infectious Disease Elimination Act (IDEA). In 2019, Florida passed a law allowing county commissions to authorize sterile needle and syringe exchange programs for people who inject drugs in order to reduce opioid overdose rates and prevent infectious diseases such as HIV and hepatitis B and C. Continue reading
COVID-19 Pandemic Impact on Harm Reduction Services: An Environmental Scan
This report provides a comprehensive review of recent research about the effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) on substance use and people who use drugs (PWUD) as well as information from key informant interviews with 21 staff members from harm reduction organizations in the United States about the experiences of PWUD and their service providers during this pandemic. Continue reading
Adapting Your Practice: Recommendations for the Care of Homeless Patients with Opioid Use Disorder
This report focuses on helping providers adapt their practice to care for people experiencing homelessness or at risk for homelessness with a diagnosis of opioid use disorder. Continue reading
Spirit of Harm Reduction: A Toolkit for Communities of Faith Facing Overdose
The Faith in Harm Reduction online toolkit is a national collection of faith and community leaders who work together to address stigma against people who use drugs and advance liberation, health, and wholeness for communities impacted by overdose, trauma, stigma of substance use, and radicalized drug policy. Continue reading