The opioid crisis is dramatically increasing the spread of infectious diseases, including HIV and viral hepatitis. SSPs provide a variety of services, such as sterile supplies, vaccinations (including hepatitis A and B vaccinations), STI testing, and education around overdose prevention and safer injection practices. SSPs are associated with an approximately 50 percent reduction in HIV and HCV incidence.

People who use drugs need routine medical care, too. SSPs are an important bridge to medical services, including abscess and wound care and psychiatric care. These programs give people the tools they need immediately, such as fentanyl test strips and naloxone, which prevent and reverse opioid overdoses. Providing these tools keeps people safe in the short term, and it also maintains a connection with individuals who might be reluctant to seek other medical care in the long term. Additionally, most SSPs offer referrals to medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD). New users of SSPs are five times more likely to enter treatment than those who don’t use these programs.

The estimated lifetime cost of treating one person living with HIV is almost $510,000; SSPs reduce health care spending by providing infectious disease testing and early treatment, which prevents disease spread in the first place. But despite the evidence showing that SSPs are effective, these programs are often stigmatized. Decades of research prove that SSPs don’t increase drug use or crime, but they do create healthier, safer communities for everyone.