Public health and drug policy reform advocates have long pushed for the legislation as a way to slow the spread of HIV and AIDS
New syringes in supply boxes, in this August 2008 photo.TRENTON — Both intravenous drug users and diabetics would benefit from a bill the state Senate approved today that would allow pharmacies to sell syringes without a doctor’s prescription.
Public health and drug policy reform advocates have long pushed for the legislation as a way to slow the spread of HIV and AIDS. More than 40 percent of the 74,000 reported cases of HIV and AIDS in New Jersey are linked to infected drug users sharing needles or having sex, said Roseanne Scotti, director of the Drug Policy Alliance of New Jersey.
But the legislation would also make needles more accessible to people with diabetes, Scotti said.
"This legislation will cost the state nothing and will save lives and taxpayer dollars," she said.
The bill (S958), which the Senate approved, 28-12, must still be passed in the Assembly before it gets to the desk of the governor, who will decide whether to sign it into law.
"New Jersey is one of only two states in the entire nation where the sale of clean needles and sterile syringes is restricted under law," said Sen. Loretta Weinberg, (D-Bergen), one of the sponsors. "We have to look at this issue with an open mind, absent moral judgment, and recognize that what drug addicts need most in New Jersey is access to clean, safe needles and treatment to help beat their addiction.’’
Under the bill, pharmacies would be able to sell up to 10 syringes to adults without a prescription. Adults holding a prescription could buy more than 10.
Pharmacies must present written information in both English and Spanish about how purchasers can dispose of the used needles as well as contact information for addiction-treatment services.
Previous coverage:
• N.J. Senate panel passes bill allowing over-the-counter sale of syringes to combat HIV, hepatitis