A small kit of supplies including syringes, bandaids and antiseptic pads waits to be used by a drug addict inside a safe injection site on Vancouver, British Columbia's eastside August 23, 2006.Andy Clark/ Reuters
A new report says there are fewer new cases of HIV among injection drug users in B.C., and health officials are crediting the province's harm reduction programs.
The report by the provincial health officer says the number of new HIV infections has remained stable nationally, but in B.C. in 2009 there were 64 new cases of HIV reported among injection drug users, compared to 137 in 2000.
It credits harm reduction strategies, including Vancouver's controversial supervised injection site, a special drug therapy program and a $48-million project run by the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS in Prince George and Vancouver to help treat at-risk populations.
The report notes there has also been an increase in crack use, which carries a lesser risk of HIV infection than IV drug use, and that fewer younger drug users are injecting their drugs, while HIV may have hit a saturation point among the aging population that does use needles.
Provincial health officer Dr. Perry Kendall says the decline is encouraging, and proof that harm reduction is working and should be expanded.
The Public Health Agency of Canada estimates that in 2008 there were 3,760 HIV-positive injection drug users in B.C.