Council Approves Prohibition on Drug Consumption Sites

At this afternoon’s County Council meeting we approved a preemptive prohibition on drug consumption sites on a 5–1 vote. I supported the ordinance, despite some concern amongst folks who work in addiction and harm reduction, because I’m focused on building broad consensus around a public health response to substance use disorder.

The theory behind the sites is that by providing a safe place to use, people are more likely to be kept alive long enough to get them into treatment. It also theoretically reduces the use of non-sanctioned sites in neighborhoods.

While I support other proven harm reduction methods like syringe exchanges which have shown tremendous public health benefits, there is an element of moral hazard here that is more difficult to calculate. By making it safer to use, are we also making it less likely that people will seek treatment?

Further, the legal exposure for such a facility is almost impossible to fathom. The laws in nations that have them are very different than the US and I have a hard time imagining how that would work here. We already worry enough about the US Attorney General’s attention to cannabis legalization.

Most importantly, we are embarking on a true public health response to a drug epidemic for the first time in Pierce County. The war on drugs has failed and we’ve built bipartisan support for this approach working alongside law enforcement, emergency medical services, judges, public defenders, treatment providers, prosecutors, doctors, and public health.

With that broad consensus we also know the public is more likely to support our efforts to build a system of prevention and education, medically assisted treatment, and therapeutic justice. I’m committed to marshalling every available resource with that goal in mind.