The Jersey City Independent "

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A recently released report from the New Jersey Department of Health & Senior Services finds that the state’s six needle exchange pilot programs, including one in Jersey City, are faring well, despite a frustrating lack of resources.

“The accomplishments and positive experiences that have occurred during the course of conducting the New Jersey Syringe Access Program Demonstration Project should serve to strengthen support for programs of its type in New Jersey and lessen the fears and concerns of the opposition,” the report reads. “Significant public health and social benefits can be realized, over time, as these types of programs are fully integrated into the fabric of communities disproportionately affected by injection-related diseases and associated problems.”

The pilot program was ushered in via a 2006 law, which made New Jersey the last state in the nation to offer some sort of needle exchange services.

The report finds that 4,482 people participated in the programs, which aim to stem the spread of HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C and other blood-borne diseases. Of those, 998 were successfully enrolled in drug treatment programs.

“We are pleased, but not surprised, that New Jersey’s evaluation has confirmed that the syringe access programs are a success,” says Roseanne Scotti, director of the New Jersey Drug Policy Alliance. “Sterile syringe access programs have been successful across the country and around the world and there is overwhelming data to support that.”

In Jersey City, which finally launched its program last July, 125 people participated through the end of the year. Of those, 28 were referred for treatment, and 15 enrolled. The folks helped thus far by the Jersey City program, which is run by the Hyacinth AIDS Foundation, have been mostly heterosexual and African-American.

The report found the biggest obstacle facing the programs is a lack of resources. None of the programs receive any state money, and all are relying on small grants from private foundations. Not long after Jersey City’s program got underway, Congress lifted the ban on using federal money to fund the programs; states are currently waiting for guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as to how federal money might be used.

“The bottom line is that every time someone comes to a sterile syringe access program, it’s one less chance they will get HIV or hepatitis, and one more chance they will get access to medical care, drug treatment and other social services,” Scotti says.

The Jersey City program provides services on Wednesdays from 10 am to 4 pm at a drop-in center at the Church of Incarnation (68 Storms Ave.), and on Thursdays from 3 pm to 7 pm at Hudson Pride Connections. To read the full report, click here.