As a recovering heroin addict I agree with this 100%. It would be much better if the US government spent more money in tackling the opioid epidemic in this way than the way they are going about it now. If you give individuals a safe injection site they can to go where they are able to get pharmaceutical grade heroin and be able to use it would help ten fold. Studies have shown lower overdose mortality (88 fewer overdose deaths per 100 000 person-years), 67% fewer ambulance calls for treating overdoses, and a decrease in HIV infections in Alberta, Canada alone. As well it makes it easier for a person to be able to ween themselves off.
Heroin addiction is evil and I struggled with it for almost all of my 20's (3 major overdoses, too many ER visits to count, two inpatient psych ward stays, one inpatient drug rehab stay, two outpatient drug rehab programs, two outpatient psych treatment stays and also seeing both a therapist and psychiatrist). I managed to stop using when I got hired at my current job in 2013. Did have two slip ups but they were one and done.
Nowadays the majority of heroin you will find here is laced with fentanyl and that ends up leading to way more overdoses. I've lost way too many friends because of that. We really wouldn't have this problem if the federal government cared more about rehabilitation in regards to drug use and abuse. Every major city in this country should be allowed to have safe injection sites with trained medical personal dispensing pharmaceutical grade heroin to addicts.
