Program offers meth pipes to drug users for free in Seattle

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http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Program-offers-meth-pipes-to-drug-users-for-free-in-Seattle--304058961.html

SEATTLE -- Volunteers behind a needle exchange in Seattle are now handing out meth pipes to drug users for free.

The program is offered 5 days per week off an alley next to a church in Seattle's University District. It was launched by a group called The People's Harm Reduction Alliance about 2 months ago.

The demand for the free meth pipes has been growing ever since, the alliance's executive director said.

"People kept coming to our program and saying that they were getting syringes because they didn't have access to a pipe," said Shilo Murphy.

About 25-30 meth pipes are handed out each day, Murphy said.

The theory behind the program is that by handing out the pipes, some drug users will rely less on needles, Murphy said. That helps cut down on the risk of certain diseases, he added.

"Whatever the reason is why both parties don't have their own… They wind up sharing. Well, this program has prevented that because all it takes is a cut orally and you've transmitted a disease possibly," said Regg Thomas, a drug user for the past 20 years who currently works with the Urban Survivors Union.

Whether the theory for the program actually works is still up for debate. But according to state law, handing out drug paraphenalia like the pipes is illegal.

That helps cut down on the risk of certain diseases, he added