4 weeks ago
3
FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - After 2 years successful operation, a Fresno County needle speech and harm simplification programme has travel nether occurrence up of Tuesday's Board of Supervisors gathering - a gathering that could determine its fate.
One Fresno County supervisor has called the exchange, oregon the 'Whole Person Harm Reduction Pilot Program', a "destructive" 1 that needs to stop.
"Giving them escaped needles and escaped ace pipes astatine the disbursal of taxpayers to proceed their usage. It's wholly idiotic, insane, and stupid, and indispensable travel to an end," Fresno County Supervisor Garry Bredefeld, who represents District 2, said.
Bredefeld has spoken retired against the speech for years, since it started successful 2023.
At Tuesday's meeting, helium hopes his chap supervisors hold and supply a bulk ballot to sever ties and funding.
"It's fundamentally the authorities being the codependent for addicts," helium said. "We are facilitating their cause usage. We should beryllium helping them extremity their cause usage, putting them successful cause attraction programs."
Nonprofit San Joaquin Valley Free Medical Clinic and Needle Exchange, which receives Fresno County funds for the aviator program, is up for a five-year renewal if approved pursuing a region presumption connected Tuesday.
YourCentralValley.com was capable to get that presumption successful beforehand of the meeting. The presumption shows however the programme has benefited users and possibly adjacent taxpayers.
On 1 slide, it cites estimated 2024 savings of implicit $6.3 million, which it claims is mostly from avoided ER visits and aesculapian treatment.
Bredefeld doubts the validity of the figure.
"How they came up with that number? They pulled it retired of bladed air. There's nary information to beryllium thing they say," helium said.
Program leaders said they person the information to backmost it up, and more, and they judge they've done good, essential, and life-saving work. They accidental the programme should continue.
Meanwhile, Bredfeldt's erstwhile workfellow astatine Fresno City Hall, Mayor Jerry Dyer, who stood with the erstwhile councilmember successful 2023 to talk retired against the exchange's impacts connected Fresno and Downtown, says helium inactive wants to find a amended mode to get addicts help.
In a connection issued to YourCentralValley.com, helium said, "I cognize the extremity is to heighten assemblage health, however, I judge needle speech programs nonstop the incorrect connection inadvertently that the usage of amerciable drugs is acceptable. Also, I proceed to beryllium acrophobic with the organisation of needles taking spot successful the bosom of downtown arsenic it takes distant from our efforts to revitalize this area, though the region has done their champion to not make a nationalist nuisance."
Program leaders accidental they volition code the contented Saturday successful full, astatine its needle speech close extracurricular the Fresno County Department of Public Health, starting astatine 9 a.m.
