Steve Burns
WMAL.com

RICHMOND – (WMAL) A law legalizing needle exchange facilities in Virginia went into effect last July, but the state’s health officials said they still have yet to receive any applications to get one up and running.

Needle exchange programs have been promoted as a way to reduce infection risk among drug users, who often contract diseases like Hepatitis C as a result of sharing or reusing needles.

“We’ve had a big increase in Hepatitis C in the state, especially in our rural areas associated with the opioid epidemic,” HIV Prevention Services Director Elaine Martin told WMAL. “Hepatitis C is often the precursor to seeing an increase in HIV infections, and we don’t want an increase in either of these diseases.”

An application for a needle exchange program must include a letter of support from local law enforcement, which Martin said has been a big hurdle so far. Possessing drug paraphernalia is still a crime, but Martin said police should agree not to detain someone participating in the exchange program. They would be identifiable through an identification card given out at the facility.

“For police in Virginia, this is a new concept to them. We’re working to educate them about the law, about the programs, and about the science,” she said.

That science, she said, confronts a stigma that needle exchange programs encourage drug use.

“We have more than 30 years of research that shows that’s really not the case,” she said. “People don’t start injecting drugs because they have access to a needle.”

In fact, she said needle exchange programs help to reduce drug use, as there is easier access to support services.

Many local police and sheriff’s departments, including Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, Fauqier, and Spotsylvania Counties, either declined to comment or did not return a request for comment from WMAL Monday.

Martin said she is somewhat dismayed by the lack of local interest.

“We were hoping to get some applications in sooner,” she said. “The law sunsets in 2020 and we want to be able to show that we’ve got good data to continue the program. We’re really hoping to get started as soon as possible.”

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