Needles on wheels: Bangor steps up clean needle game

Bangor is quietly gearing up to let health workers drop off clean syringes at home for people in its HIV case management program. This follows a city council committee vote to allow the public health department to seek certification for syringe delivery services. The move comes as HIV cases rise in Penobscot County, especially among people who inject drugs and don't have stable housing. The department says this delivery service will fill a gap for clients who can't always get to a physical needle exchange site when needed. Case managers already visit clients at their homes, so no new hires would be required. Instead, they would offer syringes at one-for-one exchange, with the option to provide up to 50 to a client who has none to dispose of. Public health experts in Maine have long pushed for easier access to clean needles as a key way to reduce HIV transmission. They say syringe distribution works well as part of a response to outbreaks. But access to clean needles remains limited in Maine, especially for people who don't have consistent transportation to get to a syringe service program.A new state law last year opened up a pathway for syringe service providers to have mobile sites and delivery services. This followed a bill presented by a Bangor representative. The law aims to make it easier for people to get clean syringes without needing a full-scale service provider. The city's public health director first raised the idea in February. She says this would also open the city up to new funding opportunities from the state CDC, which sometimes offers money specifically for syringe service providers. Beyond helping clients who can't travel to a syringe exchange, the program would build more flexibility into Bangor's syringe service landscape. It comes after a sudden shutdown last year of a nonprofit syringe service provider. This left many community organizations scrambling to fill gaps. Councilors at the meeting also approved a joint application between the local public health department, a local health care provider and a health care system in another city for state funding to provide HIV, hepatitis C and STI prevention and testing services.