The Times-Standard
Eureka Times Standard

August 30, 2005

North Coast Assemblywoman Patty Berg's needle-exchange bill has passed the Legislature and heads now to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger for his signature.

Assembly Bill 547 would eliminate a section of state law requiring cities and counties to declare a health emergency every two weeks in order to continue operating a needle-exchange program.

Several county health officers have said they would be more likely to create needle-exchange programs in their community if the every-two-week requirement were eliminated.

"Needle-exchange programs fight the spread of blood-borne diseases that threaten not just intravenous drug users, but also people whose lives are knowingly or unknowingly linked to them," states a Berg press release.

Humboldt County is one of 14 California counties that already has a needle-exchange program, run through community clinics. While AIDS is not as prevalent here as in other areas of California, the county has a high rate of Hepatitis C, which can be transmitted through shared needles.

Last year, Schwarzenegger vetoed a similar bill by Berg. But she has changed the language and gained the support of law enforcement groups.

The bill passed on a 46-29 vote.