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Report: West Virginia City’s Needle Exchange Program Should Lose Certification
By: Associated Press
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CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – An audit requested by a West Virginia mayor who said a needle exchange program had caused an increase of dirty needles in public places has recommended the suspension of the program’s certification.
The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports that a team commissioned by the state Bureau for Public Health submitted a report to Charleston on Friday, saying the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department’s Harm Reduction Syringe Services Program needs to follow a list of recommendations if it’s reinstated. The report emphasized insufficient and inaccurate data collection.
The report was released nearly two months after Charleston Mayor Danny Jones asked for the independent audit and review.
The needle exchange portion of the program has been suspended since late March.
KCHD spokesman John Law says the agency hasn’t been provided a copy of the report.