PENNSYLVANIA, USA — Pennsylvania lawmakers are considering a bill that would allow clean syringe services to operate legally across the commonwealth.
The Pa. House Judiciary Committee voted 15-10 last week to pass House Bill 1245, which would remove syringes from the state’s drug paraphernalia ban.
The move would ultimately allow clean syringe service programs to operate legally statewide; some lawmakers believe this is an important step towards solving Pa.'s ongoing opioid problems, many of which result in deaths due to unhealthy syringe practices.
According to the CDC, Syringe Service Programs are effective in reducing the transmission of viral hepatitis, HIV and other infections.
"This is not about facilitating someone’s addiction. Someone’s going to use whether or not we give them clean syringes," said State Representative Emily Kinkead (D - Allegheny County), one of the bill's co-sponsors. "It's [about] keeping them alive long enough to allow them to choose recovery."
Lawmakers who oppose the bill are more skeptical of the results.
"You’re handing a needle to a drug addict that they are going to use to harm themselves," said State Representative Paul Schemel (R-Franklin County). "We generally say we don’t do bad things to achieve good results, and that’s what I see this legislation doing."
State Representative James Struzzi (R-Indiana County) is the lone Republican to sponsor the bill.
The legislation additionally received only one Republican vote in favor within the State House Committee, possibly foreshadowing the challenges it will face getting through the legislature.
However, supporters of the bill are optimistic of its progress.
"It’s not only nice to see that this is gaining some ground, but we’re doing it in a bipartisan way," said Kinkead. "This isn’t about Democrat or Republican, this is about saving lives."
Both Allegheny County and Philadelphia have executive orders that allow legal protection for people providing syringe services. According to Philadelphia’s Department of Public Health, between 1993 and 2002, nearly 10,592 thousand cases of HIV were avoided due to the implementation of its Syringe Service Program.
"We know that the war on drugs has been an utter failure in terms of preventing addiction," said Kinkead. "Harm reduction tactics like clean syringes have been effective in reducing the number of deaths as a result of drugs."
Clayton Ruley, a member of the Pennsylvania Harm Reduction Network’s Syringe Service Program advisory committee, has worked in harm reduction for over 15 years. He says he’s seen the impact legislation like this could have firsthand.
"We know there are many dedicated individuals throughout the state who have risked legal punishment for the greater cause, which is saving lives," explained Ruley. "Being allowed to actually operate syringe services has been highly effective in not having more people sick."
However, lawmakers against the bill question if the ends justify the means.
"Even with the best of motives [and] intentions, even when there’s data that it can help some people, we don’t do harm to bring about a good," said Schemel. "This legislation is well-intentioned, but it does harm to bring about a good."
The bill now moves to the House floor for a full vote.