Abbotsford should have needle exchange program: FHA
Posted January 29, 2013 8:23 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
ABBOTSFORD (NEWS1130) – The Fraser Health Authority says Abbotsford should have a needle exchange program; it it will make its pitch at a public meeting tonight.
Abbotsford has had a by-law on the books that bans programs like needle exchanges and supervised injection sites for nearly a decade. That by-law is now being reconsidered but Mayor Bruce Banman wants people to be clear that some harm reduction programs aren’t on the table.
“A lot of people think that this means we’re going to have an injection site, but it means nothing of the kind,” he tells us.
“This is about needle exchange and how blood-borne diseases transfer from one person to another with an infected needle.”
This is the second of two panel discussions on harm reduction; last week, the the panel consisted of community service providers. Tonight, Banman wants to hear the Fraser Health reps talk about detox programs.
“I still say the ultimate harm solution is to try to get people off drugs in the first place,” he maintains. “The FHA better have some form of a detox plan that is involved with this.”
The forum will start at 7 p.m. at Matsqui Centennial Auditorium.
