SEATTLE: SAFE INJECTIONS
As the heroin epidemic deepens, cities across the country are looking for ways to deal
with the increased pressure to infrastructure and services that are the result of rampant
addiction.
Cities like New York and Boston have looked to Europe for risk mitigation strategies,
but Seattle is the first city in the U.S. to implement a “safe injection zone” for addicts.
These “safe zones” offer addicts clean needles, medical supervision and ready access
to drugs that reverse the effects of an overdose.
Seattle’s Mayor, Ed Murray (D), said the goal is to save lives. There will be two sites:
one in the city and one in surrounding King County.
Other cities such as Portland, Oregon and Burlington,Vermont are reviewing plans
and considering adopting safe injection zones in their own cities.
Although heroin use is still illegal in the U.S., many public officials view the heroin
epidemic as a public health issue. Establishing safe injection zones requires buy-in
from the community, police departments and health officials.