Harm Reduction: Needle Access Bills to Become Law in Delaware, Massachusetts

Governors in two states Monday signed into law bills that would ease injection drug users' access to clean needles. In one case, legislators overrode a gubernatorial veto to enact the law; in the other, the governor fended off Republican opposition to sign the bill.

In Delaware, Gov. Ruth Ann Minner signed into law a bill that will create a pilot needle exchange program in Wilmington. In her signing statement, Minner said she hopes the program will lower the state's HIV/AIDS infection rate and long-term health care costs associated with the disease.

Meanwhile, the Massachusetts Senate voted Monday night to join the House in overriding a Gov. Mitt Romney (R) veto of a bill that decriminalizes the possession of needles without a prescription and deregulates their sale.

Now, New Jersey is the only state with neither a needle exchange law nor a law providing access to needles without a prescription.