Vote Set for Bleach Kits to Deter HIV : Grant: County supervisors will be asked to contribute to a program that encourages drug addicts to disinfect needles. The AIDS prevention plan is likely to stir controversy.

Orange County supervisors will be asked Tuesday to approve a $900,000 federal grant for a program that would provide bleach kits to intravenous drug users in an attempt to curb the incidence of HIV infection.

The program, which has stirred some controversy when applied in other cities, including Los Angeles, would require a county contribution of $30,000, approved by the County Board of Supervisors, in each of the grant’s three years.

Supervisor Thomas F. Riley predicted Saturday that the issue would stir debate among board members and in the community, especially among those who might interpret county approval as a promotion of drug use.

“It’s going to be a major concern,” the supervisor said. “This is a very emotional issue. I’ve talked about it with my staff last week, but I have not come to a decision on it.”

Board Chairman Roger R. Stanton said he was “surprised” to see the request on the board’s agenda but declined further comment, adding that he had not yet been briefed on the issue.

Throughout the country, intravenous drug users are among those at highest risk of acquiring the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS. In Orange County, of the 2,221 AIDS cases documented in Orange County since the early 1980s, 156 cases were contracted through injection drug use, according to a September report of the county’s AIDS Surveillance and Monitoring Program.

Cleaning needles with bleach is believed to reduce the chances of transmitting the virus.

Dr. Penny Weismuller, the county’s manager for disease control and public health, said the focus of the program would be to prevent drug use altogether.

“There is a message primarily to not use drugs and to get into treatment programs,” she said, downplaying the importance of the bleach distribution. “The major part of the program is to try and identify people who are using drugs to encourage them to get into treatment, and to educate them about the risks of HIV.”

A county health official confirmed that the additional funds would also be used to establish a program of testing drug users for tuberculosis and hepatitis B. The two diseases are often associated with abusers of injectable drugs.

Supervisor Riley said he was aware of similar bleaching programs in other cities and the reports of reduced incidence of HIV attributed to the programs.

Times staff writer Jodi Wilgoren contributed to this report.