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March 21, 2007
Expanded Syringe Access Program in NY State to Expire...contact your Senator NOW
ESAP expires this September and needs to be renewed - the state Assembly passed a bill which would make ESAP permanent, but the Senate's version only extends ESAP through September, 2008.
We need everyone to contact their state Senators about this as soon as possible - the Senate bill could be voted on any day now. Below & attached is an action alert from NYAC. Please forward widely, and let me know what you hear.
Daniel Raymond
Policy Director
Harm Reduction Coalition
The Expanded Syringe Access Program (ESAP) was created in 2000 to provide injection drug users with access to sterile syringes in pharmacies without a prescription. The law was evaluated by the State Department of Health, as required in the initial law, and found to be a huge success: it greatly expanded access to sterile syringes, helped reduce HIV infections related among injection drug users, and did not result in any increases in illegal behavior, crime, or unsafe disposal. In 2003, based on this study, the Legislature and Governor Pataki agreed to extend the law for four more years.
On September 1 of 2007, the law will once again expire unless it is extended by the Governor and Legislature. Based on findings gathered over the past seven years, the Spitzer Administration proposed making the law permanent. In their one-house budget bill the Assembly concurred. Unfortunately, the Senate limited the extension to only one year.
Given the dire health implications of sharing contaminated syringes-and the seven years of unblemished success of ESAP-NYAC agrees with the Governor and Assembly that the law should become permanent. To urge the Senate to concur with the Assembly and Governor, please fax the attached letter to your local Senator and Senator Bruno. Directions for submitting the letter are included in the attachment. To identify your local Senator, please go to www.senate.state.ny.us/senatehomepage.nsf.
The Legislature may well finalize their budget plans this week, so don't delay!
Please FAX the below letter with your signature to: Senator Joe Bruno: 518-455-2448; and your senator.
If you need your Senator's fax number, call the Senate operator at 518-455-2800
If you don't know who your Senator is, look them up online at: http://capwiz.com/etp/state/main/?state=NY
Date
Address
Dear Senator________:
I'm writing to urge your support for the Expanded Syringe Access Program (ESAP).
As you may know, the Legislature enacted this program as Chapter 56 of the Laws of 2000 to prevent the transmission of HIV infection through the sharing of contaminated syringes. Based on a very favorable study conducted by the Department of Health under Governor Pataki in 2003, the Legislature extended the law for four years (Chapter 15, the Laws of 2003).
Under that law, ESAP will sunset in September of this year unless it is again extended by the Legislature. Given the overwhelming success of this program, and that fact that no negative outcomes have been found, I urge the Senate to concur with the Governor's proposal to make it permanent. As the Assembly has already concurred, your support is essential to making this happen.
Thank you in advance for your support.
Sincerely,
YOUR NAME
cc: Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno
Posted by lois at March 21, 2007 03:23 PM