BURLINGTON — Chittenden County State’s Attorney Sarah George is convening a commission to explore whether the region should open a safe injection site for heroin users.
The move comes as Vermont’s opiate crisis continues to worsen, despite efforts by the state to make treatment more accessible and increase the availability of the overdose reversal drug naloxone.
Safe injection sites are facilities where people can use drugs under medical supervision without fear of prosecution. They’re typically coupled with avenues to drug treatment and other social services.
“I see people in our community committing countless crimes, losing their jobs, losing custody of their children and even dying because of this disease” of addiction, George said Wednesday during her first official news conference as state’s attorney.
George was appointed by Gov. Phil Scott in January to replace TJ Donovan, who is now attorney general.
Vermont can’t afford to leave any option unexamined that holds out the potential of reducing overdose deaths and connecting drug users to treatment, she said.
“We consistently see good research out there that demonstrates safe injection sites can work,” George said.
There are nearly 100 safe injection sites worldwide, George said, though none currently operating in the United States. Seattle recently approved the opening of several there, and Ithaca, New York, is in the process of approving them, George said.
“However, those jurisdictions are not us. Just because they work elsewhere doesn’t mean they will work here,” George said.
The commission includes drug treatment providers, medical professionals, police and prosecutors. George said she expects a recommendation from the commission on the suitability of a safe injection site in Chittenden County in the next few months.
At Wednesday’s news conference, George was light on specifics for how such a site would be operated, where the money would come from, how it would be regulated and what the legal framework would be for government-sanctioned use of illegal drugs.
Those are issues she’s asked the commission to address, she said.
George acknowledged that she sees no way to open a safe injection site without the state’s blessing. Legislation that would pave the way for such spaces has received little consideration in Montpelier.
However, George said that if the idea were to gain traction, Chittenden County, as the state’s most populous county, is a likely place to try a safe injection site. That’s another reason she’s brought together entities that would likely be responsible for setting one up in the region.
Though the political will appears to be lacking, and much of the public finds the concept galling, George said the commission can provide information that will better inform debate on the issue.
“My impression is that people are skeptical of (the sites) that don’t know a lot about them,” George said, adding that she is hopeful the commission’s work will lead to “a much more open and honest discussion of their actual validity.”
Burlington Police Chief Brandon del Pozo, a member of the commission, indicated that his support for safe injection sites would likely be preconditioned on eliminating the current waiting list for medication-assisted treatment in Vermont.
In a hypothetical Vermont safe injection site, said del Pozo, someone injecting drugs who asked for help overcoming addiction would likely be told to get on the waiting list.
“What I predict, if nothing else, that this will come head-to-head with is the need for Vermont to really offer treatment without delay … as a companion to something like a safe injection site,” the chief said.
