California: Berkeley Needle-Exchange Program Comes Out of the Shadows

Last month, Berkeley's Needle Exchange Emergency Distribution became a registered nonprofit group, one year before its 20th anniversary. NEED obtained a state grant last year, boosting its annual budget to over $100,000. Previously, it received $50,000 in annual funding from the city.

"We've really grown a lot in the last year," said Christina Muller-Shinn, NEED's director. "When we got the money from the state, we were able to hire staff and before we were all-volunteer. We were able to become legitimized."

NEED spends about $6,000 a month distributing sharps containers, needles, condoms, the anti-overdose drug Narcan, and other injection-related items on the streets. Pamphlets given to clients include titles such as "If the Shot Hurts: Pull Out!! Avoiding Arteries and Nerves when You Want a Vein," "Shoot Smart, Shoot Safe," and "Stayin' Alive, Prevent Overdose Death."

"We don't just hand out needles to people," Muller-Shin said. "We make referrals to other health services, and we're going to start having HIV testing at all of our sites."

In 2005, California removed the requirement that municipalities declare a health state of emergency every two weeks in order to legally authorize needle-exchange programs. A year earlier, the state passed a law allowing pharmacies to sell up to 10 syringes to adults without a prescription to make access to sterile injections easier.

"I think we're getting to the place where needle exchange will be the norm," said Muller-Shinn. "It's also really amazing that if someone needs a needle on the day we don't provide services, they can buy it at the pharmacy."

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