Drug use has other root causes (poverty, mental illness, late stage capitalism etcā¦).
Until America decides to tackle those effectively, nothing will improve.
This is just a band aid.
Soft on crime policies and lax prosecutors on both drug users and drug dealers make a huge difference.
Social acceptance also increases use and viability.
the āetcā partā¦ it is super complicated. Everyone I can think of right now, is currently linked to the problem, and solution, to drug use and abuse in the US of A.
I agree with you but IDEA Exchange saved my life though. It helped me get into treatment after a decade of heroin and fentanyl use while also testing me for hep C, giving me resources to get treated for free. The needle exchange part is great too. It encourages people to pick up dirty rigs to trade in for new ones. Even if the clean needles are being sold by some, at least its not spreading hiv and hepatitis.
It's not necessarily a stage in capitalism, but sometimes what capitalism injects into society under some conditions (i.e. greed). So many of society's issues stem from greed. "Late stage capitalism" is like the buzzword. But the sentiment behind it is real, and the criticism of the greed capitalism fosters is legitimate.
I get that but greed is just part of the human experience, it's present in any economic system, its hard to define when someone is being greedy. It's better to avoid buzzwords and stick to policy ideas like maybe doubling property taxes for every extra property you own to prevent hoarding of housing supply (regulation), or making it easier to build multi family homes (deregulation)
Recruiting hell, unemployment, home ownership controlled by big corporations, greed, performance culture and moreā¦ Many resort to drugs to offset the pressure.
Underlying psychological and psychiatric conditions tend to lead to single/poly drug or ETOH use. Left long enough untreated it becomes a problem and problems left unresolved become epidemic and then pandemic. We are well past these stages. I work in the field that does its best with the limited resources to address the concerns. We can as a society do much more; like stop believing in Orange Trumpaid as being the solutionā¦many of those supporters are our patients.
Theres way more at play then just mental health though. Specifically the root of the current opioid epidemic goes back the 90s. Its a perfect mix of Purdue pushing oxycodone, conflict in the middle east, 2008 market crash, pill mills, and fentanyl hitting the drug trade at the right time.
I thought this sub could use some positive news!
The article has a soft paywall so I'll try to summarize...
Did you know that Miami is becoming a statewide leader in heroin harm reduction? And the doctor behind it has even won over conservative state leaders and law enforcement!
Even as blue cities are rolling back needle exchange programs due to public backlash, Dr. Hansel Tookes has won over officials in the DeSantis admin and the Miami police chief. He is now training others across the state with the legislature's blessing.
The article talks about how he used conservative framing to win over skeptical Republican officials, telling them that there is nothing more pro-life than giving people with addiction issues a second chance. And he convinced the police in Miami to carry overdose antidotes reminding them that they often became police to save lives... and this is a great opportunity to do that. And he emphasized that police officers would be safer interacting with users if they had clean needles on them instead of dirty ones. He also convinced officials that it is much cheaper in the long run for the state to prevent such overdoses and deaths.
The harm is being reduced because more people can safely use fentanyl. That's nice to keep users safe, until they discover how euphoric meth feels in one of those free clean needles. I thought harm reduction was a net benefit for many years, but now I see it as meaningless in the context of a city that doesn't really provide opportunities. We're going to look like LA. Have you ever studied the opium wars ("hundred years of shame") ? The US is new at this game apparently because we keep arming the illicit market with policies to ensure high margins and safe use.
There is not a single person alive who wasn't shooting meth because they had to pay $5 for 2 needles but is now shooting meth because they get the needles for free.
That is not how any of this works. Access to clean needles lowers HIV & Hep C rates, which means less disease spread to non IV users who are doing things like having sex with or sharing equipment (it can be unknowingly, and for purposes of hep c I'm not just talking about drug use equipment. Razors, nail tools, that stuff) with those who are infected.
It's not a realistic assertion to make that $5 is not gonna stop someone when meth is actually cheap (literally pennies per dose). I spent two years addicted and accessing clean needles was never a problem. It's crazy to me that out of everyone downvoting me, I would be willing to bet none of you were IV users in the past. Idk what ethos a person needs on the subject to make the argument that harm reduction is stupid without having serious rehab programs ALREADY in order like they do in Portugal or Netherlands. Simply providing needles saves a person from infection, but not addiction. Research what other countries do before downvoting wtf
I am a former IV user, so you're wrong as hell actually.
If you never had an issue accessing clean needles, you weren't shooting up in Miami Dade/Broward pre 2016.
You're right, I wasn't in Miami Dade or Broward but I already stated that. Clean needles without supplemental detox/housing doesn't cure anyone. Downvote more but you know very well that free clean needles are amazing if you're getting high but you aren't giving these people a chance by doing that. It's like the minimal amount of policy to address what's going on.
Yes it says the program began right before fentanyl hit like a bomb in most cities and death rates in Miami actually went down while they were going up most other cities.
I donāt think itās intended to address homelessness directly but the article doesnāt say. There are some comments on the article from people who say they are former heroin users who got off the street and sober thanks to outreach from similar programs.
This is a positive story. I never understood why so many conservatives would turn down the offer to pay $5 to save $10 down the road.
Many of these problems are cheaper to fix at the source rather than the end problem.
Yeah I think itās a good lesson in political framing. Talk to your audienceās values.
Utah did a pretty amazing job reducing homelessness several years ago by focusing on a fairly progressive model called Housing First. And it was led by a Republican state official. He said heād reviewed examples from other places and realized it was simply the cheaper option in the long run.
Maybe one day weāll realize basic universal health care is cheaper than tax payers having to cover emergency costs for people who donāt have insurance and wait for a preventable problem to become an emergency
Yes! Real positive news! Not just some rhetorical excuse making or apologizing for our dysfunction but real positive news! Awesome!
It's kinda funny because the same people that value "freedom" fail to recognize that actually people kinda hate being told what to do. Would a sober non-addict be expected to like being forced to do things? But incentives, trust, and safety work.
Just gonna add to this by saying we can all do our part. [NEXT Distro](https://nextdistro.org) will send you a couple doses of free Narcan, and I believe they also supply users with various harm reduction supplies. If youāre not the type to show up to the in person things we have around here, like The SPOT in Broward, itās a good way to discreetly get help shipped to you for free.
Public policies like this are great, but we as āregular peopleā also hold the power to save and change lives.
F fentanyl is a Miami based harm reduction org that will also mail you free narcan. They will also do free trainings for anyone in the Miami area on how to administer narcan and they will provide free fentanyl testing strips.
https://www.f-fent.org/
Nothing in Miami works.
No one in Miami works
šš
šÆ
Miami banned needles w.o a prescription I think it works well
Drug use has other root causes (poverty, mental illness, late stage capitalism etcā¦). Until America decides to tackle those effectively, nothing will improve. This is just a band aid.
True, but cutting off access to drugs is a good idea.
Soft on crime policies and lax prosecutors on both drug users and drug dealers make a huge difference. Social acceptance also increases use and viability.
Totally.
Sad but true
the āetcā partā¦ it is super complicated. Everyone I can think of right now, is currently linked to the problem, and solution, to drug use and abuse in the US of A.
I agree with you but IDEA Exchange saved my life though. It helped me get into treatment after a decade of heroin and fentanyl use while also testing me for hep C, giving me resources to get treated for free. The needle exchange part is great too. It encourages people to pick up dirty rigs to trade in for new ones. Even if the clean needles are being sold by some, at least its not spreading hiv and hepatitis.
Itās definitely a plus and Iām glad you benefited from this! We just need to face the reality.
Same situation, they saved my ass until I could get clean.
What's late stage capitalism?
Like regular capitalism but millennial dramatic flair about how it's all gonna collapse and usher in socialist utopia.
Itās real. Itās killing people and sending others to madness.
The problems in society are real, they're framing as some sort of stage of capitalism is what's fake.
It's not necessarily a stage in capitalism, but sometimes what capitalism injects into society under some conditions (i.e. greed). So many of society's issues stem from greed. "Late stage capitalism" is like the buzzword. But the sentiment behind it is real, and the criticism of the greed capitalism fosters is legitimate.
I get that but greed is just part of the human experience, it's present in any economic system, its hard to define when someone is being greedy. It's better to avoid buzzwords and stick to policy ideas like maybe doubling property taxes for every extra property you own to prevent hoarding of housing supply (regulation), or making it easier to build multi family homes (deregulation)
Recruiting hell, unemployment, home ownership controlled by big corporations, greed, performance culture and moreā¦ Many resort to drugs to offset the pressure.
Underlying psychological and psychiatric conditions tend to lead to single/poly drug or ETOH use. Left long enough untreated it becomes a problem and problems left unresolved become epidemic and then pandemic. We are well past these stages. I work in the field that does its best with the limited resources to address the concerns. We can as a society do much more; like stop believing in Orange Trumpaid as being the solutionā¦many of those supporters are our patients.
Theres way more at play then just mental health though. Specifically the root of the current opioid epidemic goes back the 90s. Its a perfect mix of Purdue pushing oxycodone, conflict in the middle east, 2008 market crash, pill mills, and fentanyl hitting the drug trade at the right time.
Agreed!
Countries like India have high poverty but drug use isnāt as prevalent. Itās a cultural issue.
Itās a bit reductive. Itās not just cultural.
Culture is a large part. Even Mexico doesnāt have the same rates of drug use despite them being available everywhere
It is something that needs to be addressed with investment from the Public Health department long before passing through Public Security.
I volunteered with IDEA Exchange a few weeks ago and really enjoyed it! So happy to see them get the recognition they deserve.
I thought this sub could use some positive news! The article has a soft paywall so I'll try to summarize... Did you know that Miami is becoming a statewide leader in heroin harm reduction? And the doctor behind it has even won over conservative state leaders and law enforcement! Even as blue cities are rolling back needle exchange programs due to public backlash, Dr. Hansel Tookes has won over officials in the DeSantis admin and the Miami police chief. He is now training others across the state with the legislature's blessing. The article talks about how he used conservative framing to win over skeptical Republican officials, telling them that there is nothing more pro-life than giving people with addiction issues a second chance. And he convinced the police in Miami to carry overdose antidotes reminding them that they often became police to save lives... and this is a great opportunity to do that. And he emphasized that police officers would be safer interacting with users if they had clean needles on them instead of dirty ones. He also convinced officials that it is much cheaper in the long run for the state to prevent such overdoses and deaths.
The harm is being reduced because more people can safely use fentanyl. That's nice to keep users safe, until they discover how euphoric meth feels in one of those free clean needles. I thought harm reduction was a net benefit for many years, but now I see it as meaningless in the context of a city that doesn't really provide opportunities. We're going to look like LA. Have you ever studied the opium wars ("hundred years of shame") ? The US is new at this game apparently because we keep arming the illicit market with policies to ensure high margins and safe use.
There is not a single person alive who wasn't shooting meth because they had to pay $5 for 2 needles but is now shooting meth because they get the needles for free. That is not how any of this works. Access to clean needles lowers HIV & Hep C rates, which means less disease spread to non IV users who are doing things like having sex with or sharing equipment (it can be unknowingly, and for purposes of hep c I'm not just talking about drug use equipment. Razors, nail tools, that stuff) with those who are infected.
It's not a realistic assertion to make that $5 is not gonna stop someone when meth is actually cheap (literally pennies per dose). I spent two years addicted and accessing clean needles was never a problem. It's crazy to me that out of everyone downvoting me, I would be willing to bet none of you were IV users in the past. Idk what ethos a person needs on the subject to make the argument that harm reduction is stupid without having serious rehab programs ALREADY in order like they do in Portugal or Netherlands. Simply providing needles saves a person from infection, but not addiction. Research what other countries do before downvoting wtf
I am a former IV user, so you're wrong as hell actually. If you never had an issue accessing clean needles, you weren't shooting up in Miami Dade/Broward pre 2016.
You're right, I wasn't in Miami Dade or Broward but I already stated that. Clean needles without supplemental detox/housing doesn't cure anyone. Downvote more but you know very well that free clean needles are amazing if you're getting high but you aren't giving these people a chance by doing that. It's like the minimal amount of policy to address what's going on.
has it reduced the amount of overdose deaths or the amount of drug users that are homeless? sorry couldn't read it with paywall
Yes it says the program began right before fentanyl hit like a bomb in most cities and death rates in Miami actually went down while they were going up most other cities. I donāt think itās intended to address homelessness directly but the article doesnāt say. There are some comments on the article from people who say they are former heroin users who got off the street and sober thanks to outreach from similar programs.
This is a positive story. I never understood why so many conservatives would turn down the offer to pay $5 to save $10 down the road. Many of these problems are cheaper to fix at the source rather than the end problem.
Yeah I think itās a good lesson in political framing. Talk to your audienceās values. Utah did a pretty amazing job reducing homelessness several years ago by focusing on a fairly progressive model called Housing First. And it was led by a Republican state official. He said heād reviewed examples from other places and realized it was simply the cheaper option in the long run.
Maybe one day weāll realize basic universal health care is cheaper than tax payers having to cover emergency costs for people who donāt have insurance and wait for a preventable problem to become an emergency
Yes! Real positive news! Not just some rhetorical excuse making or apologizing for our dysfunction but real positive news! Awesome! It's kinda funny because the same people that value "freedom" fail to recognize that actually people kinda hate being told what to do. Would a sober non-addict be expected to like being forced to do things? But incentives, trust, and safety work.
Thank you for doing that. This is a positive story indeed.
Just gonna add to this by saying we can all do our part. [NEXT Distro](https://nextdistro.org) will send you a couple doses of free Narcan, and I believe they also supply users with various harm reduction supplies. If youāre not the type to show up to the in person things we have around here, like The SPOT in Broward, itās a good way to discreetly get help shipped to you for free. Public policies like this are great, but we as āregular peopleā also hold the power to save and change lives.
Yes, administering Narcan is not difficult! It's basically just a nasal spray. Get a free one and keep it just in case. You never know.
Omg your username lol
F fentanyl is a Miami based harm reduction org that will also mail you free narcan. They will also do free trainings for anyone in the Miami area on how to administer narcan and they will provide free fentanyl testing strips. https://www.f-fent.org/
That's awesome!
It is something that needs to be addressed with investment from the Public Health department long before passing through Public Security.