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Daniel Beekman
Seattle Times staff reporter
Seattle could become the first city in the U.S. with a public site where users can inject and smoke hard drugs under medical supervision.
One local group plans to open a bare-bones safe-consumption site on a shoestring budget as soon as possible, while another group has launched an awareness campaign to build support among politicians and communities.
Proponents say one or more sites could reduce overdose deaths, HIV and hepatitis C transmissions and the number of used needles that litter sidewalks and alleys.
They say the sites would keep drug users alive long enough to seek treatment and give people on the margins of society means to access help.
The proponents point to Insite, a 13-year-old safe-injection site in Vancouver, B.C., where no overdose deaths have occurred. Founder Liz Evans spoke about the site to the Seattle City Council’s public-health committee last month.
Some council members were enthusiastic and Mayor Ed Murray says he wants to learn more. King County Sheriff John Urquhart says he’s leaning toward backing the safe-consumption sites idea.
“I was a narcotics detective, so I’m still trying to wrap my head around this,” Urquhart said. “But the more I hear, the more open I am to the possibility.”