June 11, 2008
To: Distribution List
From: Barbara Haller, Worcester District 4 City Councilor
William Breault, Chair, Main South Alliance for Public Safety
Subject: Massachusetts Collaborative for Action Leadership 2 Grant

This letter is written to expose a disturbing trend in public health regarding drug addiction and to reaffirm the public's right to know how their tax dollars are being spent.

The so-called "harm reduction" policies of our public health leadership serve to camouflage their aggressive actions for acceptance and normalization of illegal drug use. These policies continue to politically validate anti-social behavior at the taxpayers' expense and all the while the death toll keeps mounting. "Harm-reduction" is a failed policy - responsible addiction is an oxymoron - the figures show that addiction harm has not been reduced, but rather increased. It is important for communities to understand that the battle against drugs must include a battle against those that wish to normalize/legalize them.

Boston/Cambridge despite their years of needle exchanges, the legalization of over-the-counter needles sales, and their current van distribution of NARCAN (naloxone) continue to report ever increasing drug use and overdoses. Central Cape Cod and Lowell have joined in a pilot NARCAN distribution to addicts, supported with public dollars.

Here in Worcester the legalization of over-the-counter-sales has resulted in the increased distribution of free needles by harm reductionists. The legalization-creep movement continues as we hear that AIDS Project Worcester is preparing for one-stop shopping by establishing its own pharmacy - a de facto needle-exchange, despite three bone fide city council votes against needle-exchange.

Please note that, for more than a decade, requests to the City Administration for information regarding overdoses have either been ignored or reported as not being available. In light of the tact that in 2001 City Clerk Rushford provided Council with a 5-year report on overdoses, it is apparent that the Administration does not want the public to have this information. This is an insult to the public and smacks of underhanded public policy.

The Massachusetts Collaborative for Action Leadership 2 grant, recently awarded to Worcester, has a stated mission to improve drug abuse "prevention." In light of "harm reduction" trends and a history of secret data, the grant results threaten to be abuse "enabling" at its worse. Consider the following: preliminary meetings on the grant design include AIDS Project Worcester, Henry Lee Willis Center, Spectrum Health Systems, and Community Healthlink - all easily recognized advocates of "harm reduction" policies. Anti-normalization stakeholders continue to have to fight to get a seat at a table that has already been set. This is neither good government nor good public policy.

The harm reduction focus is solely on the drug addicts and not on the quality of life for those that do no harm - our neighborhoods. Drug addiction continues to be the greatest source of neighborhood degradation and real harm reduction policies would focus on quality of life for all. Instead current harm reduction policies do nothing for the taxpayer except to empty their pockets.

Drug policy leadership should take note that Worcester has a long history fighting against paternalistic State efforts to dilute local control. Our own Lt. Governor Timothy Murray, Chair of the Governor's Council on Substance Abuse, must certainly know that wide¬spread distribution of NARCAN to addicts as part of harm reductionism is well supported by Commissioner of Public Health, John Auerbach. We caution Mr. Murray to remember his Worcester roots and important council votes on related topics, including a 2006 vote against the Commonwealth's effort to remove local control on needle exchange.

NARCAN is a prescription drug intended to be administered by health professionals. Addicts who are revived via NARCAN need to be monitored for serious and life-threatening side-effects for some time after delivery. How did Boston/Cambridge circumvent sound prescription laws and give this drug to addicts, their friends and associates? Common sense tells us that NARCAN for addicts gives addicts a sense of confidence that they can take their "high" to the point of overdose and live to tell the tale.

We continue to believe that the best policy for reducing drug abuse and drug overdose is to focus our dollars and expertise on getting people off drugs and in recovery - treatment on demand with aggressive outreach and follow through. If we spend as much time, energy, and money on getting people off drugs as we have on addiction accommodation, we most certainly would see a significant drop in drug use and overdose deaths.

We thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Barbara G. Haller
Worcester City Councilor, District 4
[phone # removed]

William T. Breault
Main South Alliance for Public Safety
[phone # removed]

Distribution List:
To:
Mayor Konstantina Lukes
Councilor Paul Clancy
Councilor William Eddy
Councilor Michael Germain
Councilor Philip Palmieri
Councilor Joseph Petty
Councilor Gary Rosen
Councilor Frederick Rushton
Councilor Joffery Smith
Councilor Kathleen Toomey
Worcester City Manager Michael O'Brien
Acting Commissioner of Health & Human Service James Gardner
Acting Director of Public Health Derek Brindisi
Project Administrator Karyn Card
Chief of Police Gary Gemme
Fire Chief Gerard Dio
UMass Emergency Services Officer Steve Haynes

Cc:
Congressman James McGovern
State Senator Harriette Chandler
State Senator Edward Augustus
State Representative John Binienda
State Representative John Fresolo
State Representative John O'Day
State Representative Vincent Pedone
State Representative Robert Spellane
Governor Deval Patrick
Lt. Governor Timothy Murray
Commissioner of Public Health John Auerbach