Legislators are once again pushing for needle and syringe exchanges to be made legal statewide, pointing to evidence that they could be beneficial in combating the state’s opioid crisis, amid a broader conversation taking place across the city of Philadelphia, the state and the nation over how best to address drug addiction.

The proposal, introduced last week by Sen. Anthony Williams (D-Philadelphia), is part of a harm reduction paradigm increasingly embraced by activists and health professionals. That model is designed to accept the reality of drug use in society and, instead of criminalizing it, instead aims to mitigate its negative consequences while putting users on a path to treatment. 

Governor Tom Wolf (D) told the Pennsylvania Orthopaedic Society Friday that the state has seen some positive results in the battle to reverse the opioid epidemic.
 
In January 2018, Wolf signed an emergency declaration to help combat the opioid and heroin disaster. Since then, state agencies have collaborated through the Opioid Command Center, and have been assisted by outside stakeholders.

The Wolf Administration on Thursday announced that overdose deaths in Pennsylvania dropped by 18 percent from 2017 to 2018, citing data provided by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration.

The news comes as Gov. Tom Wolf and his cabinet provided an update on state efforts to combat the opioid epidemic, which has hit Pennsylvania particularly hard. 

When the legislature returns to Harrisburg in September, there will be one bill awaiting a vote in the House Health and Human Services Committee that has earned bipartisan support and, according to its supporters, could do a lot to help those struggling with the cycle of opioid addiction.