Maryland Health - General Section 24-806

      (a)      The Baltimore City Health Department shall include in its Program operating procedures measures to collect the following data:

            (1)      The number of participants served by the Program;

            (2)      The length of time a participant is served by the Program;

            (3)      Demographic profiles of participants served by the Program that include:

                  (i)      Age;

                  (ii)      Sex;

                  (iii)      Race;

                  (iv)      Occupation;

                  (v)      Zip code of residence;

                  (vi)      Types of drugs used;

                  (vii)      Length of drug use; and

                  (viii)      Frequency of injection;

            (4)      The number of hypodermic needles and syringes exchanged;

            (5)      The number of participants entering drug counseling and treatment; and

            (6)      The number of referrals made by the Program for drug counseling and treatment.

      (b)      With the advice and approval of the oversight committee, the Baltimore City Health Department shall develop and implement a plan for Program evaluation that shall include the following issues:

            (1)      The prevalence of HIV among Program participants;

            (2)      Changes in the level of drug use among Program participants;

            (3)      Changes in the level of needle-sharing among Program participants;

            (4)      Changes in the use of condoms among Program participants;

            (5)      The status of treatment and recovery for Program participants who entered drug treatment programs;

            (6)      The impact of the Program on risk behaviors for the transmission of the HIV infection, the Hepatitis B virus, and other life-threatening blood-borne diseases among injecting drug users;

            (7)      The cost-effectiveness of the Program versus the direct and indirect costs of the HIV infection in terms of medical treatment and other services normally required by HIV-infected individuals;

            (8)      The strengths and weaknesses of the Program; and

            (9)      The advisability of continuing the Program.

      (c)      As part of its plans for data collection and Program evaluation described under subsections (a) and (b) of this section, the Baltimore City Health Department shall develop and implement a methodology:

            (1)      For identifying Program hypodermic needles and syringes, such as through the use of bar coding or any other method approved by the oversight committee; and

            (2)      To perform HIV antibody testing on the residue left in a sample of hypodermic needles and syringes returned to the Program.