Groups seek to end ban on federal funds for needle exchange

"We are talking about saving lives," said Allan Clear, executive director of the Harm Reduction Coalition, which coordinated the lift-the-ban campaign to coincide with National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.

Blacks, although they comprise only 13 percent of the US population, make up roughly half of new HIV cases in 2005, according to federal figures.

Injection drug use is now blamed for causing roughly a third of new HIV cases in the United States - and it accounts for a higher proportion of cases among blacks than among whites.

Advocates of needle exchange say the programs reduce disease transmission and bring more drug addicts into supportive facilities where they can obtain social services and be offered treatment.

"They do not encourage drug use," said Representative Barbara Lee, a Democrat of California, one of the leading congressional opponents of the ban. "These programs are the way you really reach these drug users and help them end their addiction."

But opposition to the programs is entrenched, with skeptics questioning the health benefits of needle exchange and its ability to help addicts break their habit.

Dr. David Murray, chief scientist with the Office of National Drug Control Policy, is among those supporting the federal ban. He would prefer that the limited pool of federal funds for drug-related programs be devoted to treatment aimed directly at ending addiction.

"Needles are not the magic bullet," Murray said. "We are being politically pressured to make this decision [in favor of needle exchange]. But it's time to rethink if there's a more humane, effective public health response than continuing to support injection drug use."