How Drug Paraphernalia Laws Undermine Harm Reduction

State‐​level drug paraphernalia laws increase the risk of infection or overdose for drug users by preventing legal access to clean needles, syringes, and products to test drugs for deadly contaminants. Every state except Alaska criminalizes the possession and/​or sale of illicit drug paraphernalia. Thus, Alaskans can legally operate needle exchange programs and other harm‐​reduction measures. Recognizing that harm‐​reduction strategies reduce overdoses and disease, many states are considering reforms to their drug paraphernalia laws. To discuss the impact of drug paraphernalia laws on health and how states can implement better rules, we are pleased to have Corey S. Davis, the director of the Harm Reduction Legal Project of the Network for Public Health Law and adjunct faculty at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University; Robin Lutz, executive director of the Alaskan AIDS Assistance Association, which has provided harm‐​reduction services in Alaska since 1985; and Haley B. Coles, executive director of Sonoran Prevention Works, which has been engaged in harm‐​reduction and syringe services in Arizona since 2010. The discussion will be moderated by Cato Institute senior fellow Jeffrey A. Singer.

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