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Are Safe Consumption Sites the Answer to the Overdose Epidemic?

Insite

A stark picture of the toll that addiction is taking in Maryland came clear this month when the state issued its latest statistics: 2,089 people died from overdoses last year, an increase of two-thirds over 2015. Almost nine out of ten of these deaths were caused by opioids. In response to the epidemic, some are calling for approval of “safe consumption sites”--places where people can use illegal drugs with medical supervision. 

We speak to professor Susan Sherman of the Bloomberg School of Public Health, who has conducted research on safe-consumption sites, and William Miller, a street outreach educator with Behavioral Health System Baltimore and a peer leader with Baltimore POWER.

The Abell Report: Safe Consumption Spaces: A Strategy for Baltimore City

Cost-benefit analysis: Safe Space for Illegal Drug Consumption in Baltimore Would Save $6 Million a Year

Vancouver Coastal Health: Insite, a legal supervised injection site

Sheilah Kast is the host of On The Record, Monday-Friday, 9:30-10:00 am.
Maureen Harvie is Senior Supervising Producer for On the Record. She is a graduate of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and joined WYPR in 2014 as an intern for the newsroom. Whether coordinating live election night coverage, capturing the sounds of a roller derby scrimmage, interviewing veterans, or booking local authors, she is always on the lookout for the next story.