Latest Harm reduction Stories

Despite medical research that indicates Vancouver's supervised injection facility, Insite, reduces needle-sharing and overdose deaths, the facility's fate is uncertain, states an analysis article in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) (pre-embargo link only) http://www.cmaj.ca/embargo/cmaj100032.pdf.Insite was North America's first sanctioned supervised safe injection site, opened in 2003 under the then Liberal government. In 2006, a Conservative government removed harm reduction from...

First Lady Sandra Roelofs, Deputy Chairman of Parliament George Tsereteli and Vice Minister of Labor, Health and Social Affairs Irakli Giorgobiani show support for evidence-based drug policySandra Roelofs, First Lady of Georgia; George Tsereteli, Georgia's Deputy Chairman of Parliament; and Irakli Giorgobiani, Georgia's Vice Minister of Labour, Health and Social Affairs, today signed the Vienna Declaration, the official declaration of the XVIII International AIDS conference (AIDS 2010) in...

Access to opioid substitution therapy such as methadone can facilitate access to and retention in ARTAgainst the backdrop of some of the globe's fastest growing HIV epidemics in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, a report launched today at the XVIII International AIDS conference (AIDS 2010) in Vienna makes the case for a new model for scaling up treatment and prevention of HIV amongst Injecting Drug Users (IDUs).The report, "Prevention and Treatment of HIV/AIDS amongst Drug Using...

Policy resistance to harm reduction for drug users and potential effect of changeStrict laws on the criminalisation of drug use and drug users are fuelling the spread of HIV and other serious harms associated with the criminal market and should be reviewed, say experts in a series of articles published on bmj.com today to coincide with the 18th International AIDS Conference in Vienna, 18-23 July 2010.Countries most affected include Russia and Ukraine, which operate strict drug laws and remain...

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- SafeGames 2010 (www.safegames2010.com), a consortium of local, national, and international harm-reduction and advocacy organizations under the leadership of Keeping The Door Open Society, is working to ensure that Vancouver residents and international visitors celebrate safely during the 2010 Winter Olympics. SafeGames will provide a wide array of resources to help keep the Olympic community safe and protected, including tips on safe sex...

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- SafeGames 2010 (www.safegames2010.com), a consortium of local, national, and international harm-reduction and advocacy organisations, is working to ensure that Vancouver residents and international visitors celebrate safely during the upcoming Winter Olympics. Modelled after Salt Lake City's successful SafeGames 2002 initiative, SafeGames 2010 will employ a wide array of outreach and advocacy practices. SafeGames' teams of 200-plus...

NEW YORK, Dec. 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Every year when New Year's rolls around, countless Americans make resolutions to change their drinking habits for the better. Although some people may succeed in changing their alcohol habits just by making a resolution, most will fail unless they do a bit more. Alcohol expert Kenneth Anderson of The HAMS Harm Reduction Network tells us that the key elements to successful behavioral change are the following: Setting realistic goalsDetailed...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement today applauding the inclusion of language in the fiscal year 2010 Consolidated Appropriations Act lifting the ban on federal funding for syringe exchange initiatives to prevent the spread of HIV. The omnibus bill passed the House this afternoon by a vote of 221 to 202. "The scientific support for syringe exchange could not be more clear. As Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National...

NEW YORK, Nov. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- There is a new game in town when it comes to dealing with alcohol problems. It is harm reduction, offering pragmatic and realistic strategies where traditional approaches to alcohol problems have failed. Spearheading this movement is a group called HAMS -- Harm Reduction, Alcohol Abstinence and Moderation Support. HAMS is a free-of-charge, lay-led support and informational group for people who drink alcohol. The National Institute on Alcohol...

High Level Meeting Convenes in Vienna to Chart Future of Drug Control Efforts NEW YORK, March 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In advance of a United Nations meeting meant to set the direction of drug policy for the next decade, the Open Society Institute today released a new report documenting the costs to health and human rights of current, repressive approaches to drug control. Country delegates gathering in Vienna next week are expected to issue a political declaration that could impact...