Medical Emergency Declaration to Be Sought for Needle Swaps
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FRESNO — Needle-exchange advocates plan to ask Fresno County to declare a local medical emergency that would allow intravenous drug users to legally exchange dirty hypodermic needles for clean ones.
Under a law signed by Gov. Gray Davis in October, local governments can declare a medical emergency in response to a public health threat, preventing prosecution of anyone who distributes clean needles.
Four people are set for trial Feb. 7 in Fresno for handing out clean needles and syringes. They face up to a year in jail on misdemeanor charges.
With 15,000 intravenous drug abusers in Fresno County, a medical crisis exists, said Tony Mello, founder of the San Joaquin Valley Exchange Works, which hands out needles at parks and on streets. Mello said he plans to ask county supervisors to declare a medical emergency at their Jan. 25 meeting.
Intravenous drug users are at risk of HIV infection, hepatitis C and multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis.
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