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Proposals to let Massachusetts create sites where people could use illegal drugs in the presence of staff trained to help reverse overdoses will be the subject of a one-day virtual hearing Monday at the Statehouse.
One of the bills would create a 10-year pilot program “establishing at least two supervised consumption sites that use harm reduction tools, including clinical monitoring of the use of pre-obtained controlled substances in the presence of staff. trained, with the aim of reducing the risk of disease transmission and preventing overdose deaths.
The site should provide sterile injection equipment, collect used hypodermic needles and syringes, and provide safe disposal services for hypodermic needles and syringes, as well as offer referrals to drug treatment and risk education. get HIV and viral hepatitis.
Similar proposals have met with political setback in the past.
In 2019, Republican Gov. Charlie Baker said such sites would be illegal under federal law and the state should instead focus on legal actions to curb overdose deaths. At the time, he pointed to comments from former US Attorney Andrew Lelling who said that regardless of state law, drug users and site workers would face federal criminal charges.
The idea of supervised sites has the support of groups like the Massachusetts Medical Society, the Massachusetts Hospital Association, and the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts.
The ACLU also supports legislation that would make personal possession of illicit drugs a civil rather than a criminal violation, and offer people with substance use disorders a link to potential treatment – proposals that will also be part of the process. of the audience.
In July, Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee enacted a bill to allow the opening of so-called harm reduction centers where people with drug addiction can take heroin and other drugs. illegal under the supervision of medical professionals, making Rhode Island the first to adopt such a statewide measure to combat the opioid crisis.
The hearing of the Joint Committee on Mental Health, Addiction and Recovery will be held Monday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. From 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., the hearing will focus on the two decriminalization invoices and from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the three invoices from the supervised consumption sites.
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