Lifting the Federal Ban on the funding of syringe

exchange: An advocacy campaign

Allan Clearwww.harmreduction.orgXVIII International AIDS

Conference

Brief History

US government instituted a ban on the use of federal government money in 1988• Surgeon General had to declare that

syringe exchange reduced HIV transmission and didn’t increase drug use

Advocacy efforts in 1997 persuaded the Clinton Administration to ‘certify the science’• Clinton did not remove the ban

Brief History

In 2006 with a new Congress advocates initiated campaign • Restrictions on use of syringe exchange ban in

Washington DC removed President Obama gets elected

• White House website: "The President also supports lifting the federal ban on needle exchange, which could dramatically reduce rates of infection among drug users."

Advocates move to remove the federal ban from Appropriations Bill

Messaging

Syringe exchange stops the spread of HIV/AIDS and;

Serves as a gateway to drug treatment i.e. Doesn’t increase drug use

Strategy

Finding a champion - Congressman Serrano!

Strategy

Community AIDS and Hepatitis Prevention Act

Multiple visits to members of Congress

Targeting key gate keepers especially members of Appropriations Committee

Gained confidence of Chair of Appropriations Committee

Multiple Advocacy Partners Aids Action, Physicians for Human Rights, amFAR,

North American Syringe Exchange Network, National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors, San Francisco AIDS Foundation, Drug Policy Alliance, AIDS Foundation of Chicago, GMHC

Sign-on letter to Obama with 250 organizations

Congressional Briefing – HRC, GMHC, syringe exchange program, NY State Department of Health

Regional grassroots advocacy

Call in days Call in to get the final vote Letters

• 2268 letters• Sign-on letter to Obama with 250 organizations

Postcard campaign In-district meetings

• Pelosi confrontation Local education

Media Campaign

EDITORIALFinally, healthy support for needle exchangesFebruary 13th, 2008Given the epidemic levels of HIV/AIDS in the African-American population, it's about time leading black-oriented organizations such as the NAACP and National Urban League threw their support behind federal funding for needle exchange programs, as they did last week.

Dirty needles are a leading source of HIV infections, but the federal government has for 20 years refused to fund no-questions-asked exchange programs for drug users, preferring to put money into prevention and treatment for addicts. Can't we acknowledge reality and do both?

Not all addicts are going to be reached by treatment; most will keep shooting up. Needle exchanges, such as the successful one run by Detroit's Community Health Awareness Group, can keep them safer from HIV/AIDS, hepatitis and other problems until they're serious about trying to quit. Just as important, this kind of prevention cuts down on the number of infected addicts who can spread HIV in other ways.

African Americans account for only about 13% of the U.S. population, but a shocking half of all new cases of HIV/AIDS. The NAACP, Urban League and others are part of a Harm Reduction Coalition, which called for support for needle exchanges as part of last Thursday's National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. The day's theme was "prevention is power" -- and needle exchanges are an important, reality-based form of prevention.

Lessons Learned

Friendly political environment Assess political mechanisms Find a champion Multiple voices with one consistent

message Media

1000 Foot Rule!

Sec. 523 of HR 3293 reads: "None of the funds contained in this Act may be used to distribute any needle or syringe for the hypodermic injection of any illegal drug in any location which is within 1,000 feet of a public or private day care center, elementary school, vocational school, secondary school, college, junior college, or university, or any public swimming pool, park, playground, video arcade, or youth center, or an event sponsored by any such entity."