The latest twist in El Dorado County culture wars? Drug needle exchange programs | Opinion
The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors’ fierce defense of its illegal ordinance against science-based needle exchange programs seems less about public health and more about a culture war brought by the far-right leadership of a politically isolated California county.
At issue is a county government’s contention — despite scientific evidence to the contrary — that needle exchange programs promote drug use. It would not be the first time that this body put its desire to fight Sacramento ahead of common sense and epidemiological data.
The supervisors and the City of Placerville have found themselves at the center of a lawsuit brought by Attorney General Rob Bonta and the California Department of Public Health when, in December of 2023, they passed ordinances banning state-authorized syringe services programs designed to administer medication to reverse opioid overdoses and prevent the spread of HIV and viral hepatitis among drug users who share contaminated syringes.
Four years ago, consistent with state public health and safety laws, the Department of Public Health approved the Sierra Harm Reduction Coalition, a small non-profit, as a multi-faceted program serving El Dorado County. State public health officials credit the group with saving the lives of 421 people in El Dorado County who would have otherwise overdosed on opioids.
The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors took action to ban the Sierra Harm Reduction Coalition from operating in the county at the urging of District Attorney Vern Pierson and El Dorado County Sheriff Jeff Leikauf.
“We essentially are normalizing the use of hardcore drugs,” Pierson said to CBS News, doubling down on a message also promoted by Leikauf.
“I will continue to tirelessly fight programs that hand out hypodermic needles and other drug paraphernalia to our community members,” Leikauf said at a Board of Supervisors meeting in December of 2023.
Leikauf’s remarks fly in the face of nearly 30 years of research cited by the National Institute on Drug Abuse showing syringe exchange programs are safe, effective and cost-saving tools that can prevent HIV and high-risk injection behaviors among people who inject drugs. Sierra Harm Reduction Coalition’s mission is to help clients shift from harmful practices toward a safe and fulfilling life by referring services for drug treatment, mental and physical health, food, shelter and transportation.
Pierson told CBS 13 that syringe exchange programs have increased drug use — despite evidence to the contrary from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention that says syringe exchange programs don’t increase drug consumption and participants are more likely to enter drug treatment programs and more likely to stop injecting drugs.
The Los Angeles Times recently reported that, due to a preliminary injunction from Superior Court Judge Gary S. Slossberg, El Dorado County cannot enforce its ban on programs that hand out clean syringes as a legal battle continues between the county and the state’s Department of Public Health.
Now, the City of Placerville is distancing itself from the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors on the matter, breaking ranks with Pierson who has said of the lawsuit, “We are going to fight it with every ability that we have.”
Placerville wisely commenced settlement communications with the Department of Public Health to resolve the lawsuit, voting over the summer to rescind its controversial ordinance.
The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors should follow Placerville’s lead and settle with the Department of Public Health. Digging in their heels may feel politically satisfying to local politicians eager to thumb their noses at Sacramento, but it’s bad public policy that wastes taxpayer dollars and hurts residents and families in the county struggling with addiction.