Los Angeles
supervisors approve funds for needle-exchange program

The Los Angeles County board of supervisors this week voted 3-2 to allocate $500,000 to fund five needle-exchange programs in the county to help prevent the spread of HIV and other blood-borne diseases among injection-drug users, the Los Angeles Times reports. Jonathan Fielding, county public-health director, says his agency will ask nonprofit groups that currently operate needle exchanges in the city of Los Angeles to expand into other parts of the county through four mobile exchange programs and one fixed-site program. The funds set aside for the programs come from the county's share of tobacco legislation settlements. County officials hope the expanded programs will reach an additional 10,000 injection-drug users in the county, who are at a high risk of HIV and hepatitis infection by sharing needles and other drug paraphernalia. The two supervisors who opposed funding say the programs encourage drug use.