1. What do Syringe Services Programs (SSPs) mean for Massachusetts?
The Cambridge, Massachusetts Police Commissioner Ronnie Watson reported that the syringe access programs in
Cambridge had no impact on crime, no impact on the police's ability to make drug arrests and no impact on their ability to
police in Cambridge.
1
Why Massachusetts?
Massachusetts has the fifth highest percentage of AIDS cases attributed to injection drug use, with more than one-third
(37.6%) of all AIDS cases occurring in this group, compared to 25.2% nationally.
2
Access to SSPs Disproportionately Affects Latinos & African Americans
Although African Americans account for only 6% of the Massachusetts population, 24% of new HIV infections attributed to
IDU are among African Americans. Latinos account for 9% of the Massachusetts population and 39% of new HIV infections
due to IDU.
Race and ethnicity of IDUs with HIV in MA, 2010
3
Federal dollars went to SSPs in Massachusetts
 The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) provided $80,000 to Tapestry Health in
Northampton.
 As a result of the ban on federal funding to support SSPs, Massachusetts SSPs have suffered reduced hours of
operation, fewer supplies offered, and complete elimination off-site outreach.
Syringe Services Programs Work in Massachusetts
In 1987, Boston was the first U.S. city to approve developing a syringe services program.
4
Massachusetts has 5 syringe
services programs serving Boston, Cambridge, Holyoke, Northampton, and Provincetown.
5
The proportion of HIV
exposures attributed to IDU has fallen from 41% in 1995 to less than 10% in 2009, in part due to the impact of these
effective programs. According to the AIDS Action Committee, prevention strategies targeting injection drug users are a
crucial part of Massachusetts’ success in:
 Saving Lives - SSPs helped reduced new HIV infection by 54%, saving an estimated 5,699 lives.
 Saving Money – SSPs helped save more than $2 billion in health care expenditures
6
Massachusetts’ relatively small investment in syringe services funding can have huge returns. Studies have found that
every $1 invested in syringe services programs results in $3-7 in savings.
7
Thus, we can estimate that the $80,000
federal dollars spent will result in up to $560,000 in savings for Massachusetts.
Former Suffolk District Attorney Ralph Martin, former Somerville Chief of Police George McLean, and other law
enforcement officials filed a friend-of-the-court-brief stating that needle services programs do not hinder law enforcement,
and protect the public by helping get addicts into treatment.
8
1
The Access Project. Available at: http://www.texasaccessproject.org/Common_Questions.html
2
Estimated Numbers of AIDS Diagnoses Among Adults and Adolescents by Transmission Category, Cumulative through 2010. Available at: http://kff.org/hivaids/state-indicator/aids-diagnoses-by-
exposure-category/?state=MA
3
Massachusetts HIV/AIDS Data Fact Sheet: Injection Drug Users 2011. Available at: http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/docs/dph/aids/2011-profiles/idu.pdf
4
The Nation: Needle Exchange comes of age: http://www.thenation.com/article/156930/needle-exchange-comes-age
5
Sterile Syringe Exchange Programs, 2011. Available at: http://www.statehealthfacts.org/comparetable.jsp?ind=566&cat=11
6
AIDS Action Committee. President Obama’s 2013 Budget shows commitment to ending HIV/AIDS. The Rainbow Times.
7
Nguyen TQ. Increasing investment in syringe exchange is cost-saving HIV prevention: modeling hypothetical syringe coverage levels in the United States. Nineteenth International AIDS Conference,
Washington DC, abstract MOAE0204, 2012.
8
ACLU, Massachusetts Supreme Court Ruling Supports Needle Exchange Programs. Available at: http://www.aclu.org/drug-law-reform/massachusetts-supreme-court-ruling-supports-needle-exchange-
programs