The Nation - News from Aug. 12, 1988
New York health officials said they would begin a long-debated experiment to distribute free, clean needles to 200 drug addicts in an effort to slow the spread of AIDS, according to a published report. In an interview published in today’s editions of the New York Times, city Health Commissioner Dr. Stephen C. Joseph said officials hope the project will be operating in about 10 weeks. The state Health Department approved the experiment this week and local prosecutors have judged it to be legal, the Times said. Needles are distributed in several other countries but no government agency has yet done so in the United States.
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