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Baltimore needle
exchange wants to expand

Baltimore needle
exchange wants to expand

Although Baltimore's 11-year-old needle exchange program has helped reduce the HIV infection rate among the city's injection-drug users by 20%, exchange workers are hoping to expand its services, particularly by targeting more younger drug users, The Baltimore Sun reports. The needle exchange, which operates out of two vans that stop at about a dozen sites around the city, currently has about 325 visitors per week and distributes about 6,500 syringes as well as injection-drug equipment each month. But exchange officials say only about 6% of the program's clients are under age 25 and that only about 10% of the city's injection-drug users have ever used the needle exchange. To help expand the needle exchange, particularly by targeting young drug users, the city is applying for a $25,000 Tide Foundation grant, which would pay for peer outreach and a youth-specific time for exchange services. Plans also call for the exchange vans to operate at sites other than on busy streets, where younger injection-drug users may fear being recognized. (Advocate.com)

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