2005 Connecticut Code - Sec. 19a-124. Needle and syringe exchange programs.

      Sec. 19a-124. Needle and syringe exchange programs. (a) The Department of Public Health shall establish needle and syringe exchange programs in the health departments of the three cities having the highest total number of cases of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome among intravenous drug users as of December 31, 1991. The department shall establish, with the assistance of the health departments of the cities selected for the programs, protocols in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b) of this section. The department and the city health departments shall evaluate the effectiveness of the programs based on the criteria specified by the Department of Public Health. The department may authorize similar programs in other areas of the state, as determined by the commissioner, through local health departments or other local organizations.

      (b) The programs shall: (1) Be incorporated into existing acquired immunodeficiency syndrome prevention and outreach projects in the selected cities; (2) provide for free and anonymous exchanges of needles and syringes and (A) provide that program participants receive an equal number of needles and syringes for those returned, up to a cap of thirty needles and syringes per exchange, (B) provide that first-time applicants to the program receive an initial packet of thirty needles and syringes, educational material and a list of drug counseling services; and (C) assure, through program-developed and commissioner-approved protocols, that a person receive only one such initial packet over the life of the program; (3) offer education on the transmission of the human immunodeficiency virus and prevention measures and assist program participants in obtaining drug treatment services; and (4) for the first year of operation of the program, require all needles and syringes to be marked and checked for return rates.

      (c) The commissioner shall require programs to include an evaluation component during the first year of operation to monitor (1) return rates of needles and syringes distributed, (2) behavioral change of program participants, such as needle sharing and the use of condoms, (3) program participation rates and the number of participants who are motivated to enter treatment as a result of the program and the status of their treatment, and (4) the incidence of intravenous drug use to see if there is a change as a result of the program. The department shall establish evaluation and monitoring requirements to be applied to subsequent years of the programs.

      (d) The health department of each city selected for a needle and syringe exchange program or the person conducting the program shall submit a report evaluating the effectiveness of the program to the Department of Public Health. The department shall compile all information received on the programs and report to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to public health and appropriations and the budgets of state agencies.

      (P.A. 90-214, S. 3, 5; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-3, S. 1, 2; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-11, S. 52, 70; P.A. 93-381, S. 9, 39; P.A. 94-16; P.A. 95-257, S. 12, 21, 58; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 99-2, S. 4.)

      History: May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-3 amended Subsec. (a) to authorize department to establish additional programs, Subsec. (b) to change requirement regarding marking of needles and syringes to apply only to first year of program, Subsec. (c) to require the department to establish evaluation and monitoring requirements and Subsec. (d) to provide for the department to compile information received from the programs; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-11 made a technical change in Subsec. (b); P.A. 93-381 replaced department of health services with department of public health and addiction services, effective July 1, 1993; P.A. 94-16 removed limit of three additional programs and raised number of needles and syringes permitted per exchange from five to ten; P.A. 95-257 replaced Commissioner and Department of Public Health and Addiction Services with Commissioner and Department of Public Health, effective July 1, 1995; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 99-2 amended Subdiv. (2) of Subsec. (b) by replacing "ten syringes" with "thirty needles and syringes", adding Subpara. (B) re first-time applicants and Subpara. (C) re assurance of one packet per person, and made technical changes.