San Francisco – San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie won the election in November, promising to fight the city’s fentanyl crisis.
The new policy will come into effect on April 30, marking a huge shift in strategies used in San Francisco in recent years, rather than pressure — but not pressure — illegal drug users are treated even if overdoses are as high as 800 in 2023.
Over the years, San Francisco and other cities have promoted the development of community programs that provide so-called hazardous services. Such programs are often aimed at homeless people who struggle with addiction, sending street workers to distribute sterile syringes and clean smoking kits (e.g., foils, pipes, and straws) with the goal of preventing transmissible diseases such as transmissible diseases such as HIV and hepatitis. Many of these procedures can also be distributed with Narcan, which can also rapidly reverse the effect of OPIOICIOID dosage.
The way to reduce harm is a firm defender who says the strategy helps maintain drug addiction until they are ready to receive treatment. The strategy is also tired of critics who say the concept of “where to satisfy the addict” has not yet proven enough to get people seeking treatment or lower mortality.
Lurie said at a press conference at City Hall that the San Francisco era distributed drugs without linking people to treatment, while the overdose crisis was exacerbated by Fentanyl, which would have a more positive response.
“We have a lot of work to do in this city,” Lurie said. “We see people struggling with addiction. We see people dying from overdose. We have to make a change.”
Under the new policy, municipal staff and nonprofits that will receive city funding are prohibited from distributing sterile syringes and other supplies unless they actively work to connect people with treatment and counseling. This policy prohibits workers from spreading smoking supplies in streets, parks and other public places rather than doing such handouts indoors or in city-approved places. It will not change the rules surrounding the distribution of cleaning syringes in public places.
“We’re really trying to be proactive here, not waiting and watching people die,” said Daniel Tsai, director of the San Francisco Department of Public Health.
After the Trump administration announced the news last month, tighter restrictions were restricted that it is revoking billions of dollars in federal grants, which helps fund mental health and addiction services across the country. For San Francisco leaders, the prospect of massive cuts that the federal government provides substantial funding for community services is particularly worrying. San Francisco leaders face a budget deficit of nearly $1 billion starting this year.
Lurie usually avoids talking about Trump during her first few months of her tenure, saying his administration is “focused on what we can control now.” In recent weeks, he announced a series of policy shifts that moved San Francisco away from critics (and many voters), a softening approach that could prevent open drug dealing and drug use that plague some communities, including downtown, ridge and southern markets.
Shortly after taking office in January, Lurie worked with the board to adopt a measure that would give his office more power to bypass the barriers of bureaucracy that slowed the growth of shelter and treatment programs for the homeless, and more room for seeking private funds to fund these initiatives.
He is working to open a 24/7 “stability center” at the Tenderloin Center where police can give up on people who need medical services. He also moved forward with a campaign promise to open another 1,500 treatment beds.
Lurie’s early efforts shocked some frontline street workers, who said he abandoned strategies to effectively prevent overdoses.
Tyler Termeer, CEO of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, warned that the new policy could lead to more people switching from smoking drugs to injecting them, increasing the likelihood of overdose and staining for infectious diseases.
“The San Francisco AIDS Foundation is firmly stating that it provides people with the information and resources they need to take care of themselves, including safer supplies, treatment and counseling services, the best health of those who use substances,” Termeer said.
The Lurie office said the public health department will monitor the overdose rate and the spread of HIV and hepatitis C to ensure that the policy is aligned with the overall public health goals. ”
Both Lurie and Tsai admit that the new approach is not easy to implement. First, the city does not have enough treatment beds to accommodate everyone in need. Rules no longer force people to receive treatment. Despite this, San Francisco must upend the status quo, even if it expands the capacity for therapeutics and temporary housing, Lurie said.
“What we’re doing is not working,” Lurie said. “I’m not going to sit down and not take action.”
