A southern Indiana county has decided to end a needle exchange program that was created in response to the state’s worst-ever HIV outbreak driven by intravenous drug use.A last-ditch effort was made Wednesday as Scott County residents tried to persuade commissioners to not end the needle exchange program.”The program works, please don’t vote to stop it,” said one resident.”We strongly recommend Scott County continue with the clean needle exchange program in order to control the spread of HIV,” said another resident.After ongoing discussions, Scott County commissioners voted 2-1 to phase out and end the needle exchange program on Jan. 1, 2022.WLKY reporter Shaquille Lord tweeted that the date could be pushed back if there are plans in the works to get a new program in place. The vote happened before a packed room of community members, many of whom advocated for the continuation of the program.Many in attendance believed the vote to end the program was inevitable, calling it a bittersweet moment because some will have to find a similar resource elsewhere.”We anticipate this would be the way Commissioners would vote,” said Dr. Kevin Rogers, the Scott County Health Officer. Ricky Williams who has been clean for more than 20 months.”If it wasn’t for the needle exchange program and the outreach of people here and getting to meet people you can trust… I probably wouldn’t be here,” Williams told WLKY.Commissioners say the Jan. 1 date is not set in stone meaning if there’s another program that is identified that can replace the needle exchange program but needs more time – they’re willing to push the date back.”I’m not stuck in the mud where if something we see is not working, I’m not opposed to changing,” said commissioner Mike Jones.Health advocates say the next step is identifying a similar program that can replace it.”I think the big issue is going to be funding. Thinking of having something open for 24 hours, that’s a lot to undertake especially if you have clinical services, non-clinical services,” said Michelle Matern, Administrator for the Scott County Health Department.During a public meeting in May, those in attendance included an HIV-positive woman who said the program is more than enabling addicts. The woman, who is now married with children, credits the syringe service program for also providing her insurance that she still has to this day, which gave her access to medication to live with HIV.The needle exchange program, started in 2015, was created to help curb the HIV outbreak in the area. Health officials, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have called Scott County’s program a success in drastically reducing the spread of infectious diseases by providing IV users with clean syringes to discourage needle sharing. But the continuation of such programs there and elsewhere have faced opponents who argue they enable drug abuse and lead to more needles being left in public places.Recovery organization “Thrive” wanted the program to continue because the stigmas around HIV and drug abuse have shifted.Scott County’s needle exchange began after then-Gov. Mike Pence, amid mounting HIV cases driven by users of a liquefied form of the painkiller Opana, overcame his objections to such programs and authorized the state’s first-ever effort to provide addicts with clean needles. The area’s HIV outbreak eventually grew to about 235 people infected — with nearly 200 of them in 24,000-person Scott County and centered in the small town of Austin about 40 miles north of Louisville.State health department reports show Scott County had fewer than five new HIV cases during 2020 and that its rate of hepatitis C infections had fallen by about two-thirds since 2015, even though it remained the third-highest among Indiana’s 92 counties during 2019.Indiana’s state health commissioner, Dr. Kristina Box, and her predecessor, Dr. Jerome Adams, who was U.S. surgeon general under President Donald Trump, attended a county commissioners’ meeting in early May to urge them to continue the program. Box said that jettisoning it would inevitably lead to rising HIV and hepatitis C cases. “We may not see it immediately, but there’s no question in my mind we would see increasing rates of hepatitis C, we’d see increasing rates of HIV, we’d see individuals coming back to the emergency room,” Box told reporters at the meeting.Indiana began allowing the exchanges in 2015, but only with state approval, after Scott County’s HIV outbreak. State lawmakers in 2017 backed allowing counties and cities to create their own programs.Indiana’s authorization for the exchanges had been set to expire in 2022, but earlier this year legislators approved extending that permission until July 2026.Eight other counties now have needle programs, including Clark County just south of Scott County. Others are those with the cities of Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Lafayette, Bloomington, Anderson, Richmond and Connersville.
SCOTT COUNTY, Ind. —
A southern Indiana county has decided to end a needle exchange program that was created in response to the state’s worst-ever HIV outbreak driven by intravenous drug use.
A last-ditch effort was made Wednesday as Scott County residents tried to persuade commissioners to not end the needle exchange program.
“The program works, please don’t vote to stop it,” said one resident.
“We strongly recommend Scott County continue with the clean needle exchange program in order to control the spread of HIV,” said another resident.
After ongoing discussions, Scott County commissioners voted 2-1 to phase out and end the needle exchange program on Jan. 1, 2022.
WLKY reporter Shaquille Lord tweeted that the date could be pushed back if there are plans in the works to get a new program in place. The vote happened before a packed room of community members, many of whom advocated for the continuation of the program.
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Many in attendance believed the vote to end the program was inevitable, calling it a bittersweet moment because some will have to find a similar resource elsewhere.
“We anticipate this would be the way Commissioners would vote,” said Dr. Kevin Rogers, the Scott County Health Officer.
Ricky Williams who has been clean for more than 20 months.
“If it wasn’t for the needle exchange program and the outreach of people here and getting to meet people you can trust… I probably wouldn’t be here,” Williams told WLKY.
Commissioners say the Jan. 1 date is not set in stone meaning if there’s another program that is identified that can replace the needle exchange program but needs more time – they’re willing to push the date back.
“I’m not stuck in the mud where if something we see is not working, I’m not opposed to changing,” said commissioner Mike Jones.
Health advocates say the next step is identifying a similar program that can replace it.
“I think the big issue is going to be funding. Thinking of having something open for 24 hours, that’s a lot to undertake especially if you have clinical services, non-clinical services,” said Michelle Matern, Administrator for the Scott County Health Department.
During a public meeting in May, those in attendance included an HIV-positive woman who said the program is more than enabling addicts. The woman, who is now married with children, credits the syringe service program for also providing her insurance that she still has to this day, which gave her access to medication to live with HIV.
The needle exchange program, started in 2015, was created to help curb the HIV outbreak in the area. Health officials, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have called Scott County’s program a success in drastically reducing the spread of infectious diseases by providing IV users with clean syringes to discourage needle sharing.
But the continuation of such programs there and elsewhere have faced opponents who argue they enable drug abuse and lead to more needles being left in public places.
Recovery organization “Thrive” wanted the program to continue because the stigmas around HIV and drug abuse have shifted.
Scott County’s needle exchange began after then-Gov. Mike Pence, amid mounting HIV cases driven by users of a liquefied form of the painkiller Opana, overcame his objections to such programs and authorized the state’s first-ever effort to provide addicts with clean needles.
The area’s HIV outbreak eventually grew to about 235 people infected — with nearly 200 of them in 24,000-person Scott County and centered in the small town of Austin about 40 miles north of Louisville.
State health department reports show Scott County had fewer than five new HIV cases during 2020 and that its rate of hepatitis C infections had fallen by about two-thirds since 2015, even though it remained the third-highest among Indiana’s 92 counties during 2019.
Indiana’s state health commissioner, Dr. Kristina Box, and her predecessor, Dr. Jerome Adams, who was U.S. surgeon general under President Donald Trump, attended a county commissioners’ meeting in early May to urge them to continue the program. Box said that jettisoning it would inevitably lead to rising HIV and hepatitis C cases.
“We may not see it immediately, but there’s no question in my mind we would see increasing rates of hepatitis C, we’d see increasing rates of HIV, we’d see individuals coming back to the emergency room,” Box told reporters at the meeting.
Indiana began allowing the exchanges in 2015, but only with state approval, after Scott County’s HIV outbreak. State lawmakers in 2017 backed allowing counties and cities to create their own programs.
Indiana’s authorization for the exchanges had been set to expire in 2022, but earlier this year legislators approved extending that permission until July 2026.
Eight other counties now have needle programs, including Clark County just south of Scott County. Others are those with the cities of Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Lafayette, Bloomington, Anderson, Richmond and Connersville.