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Are Syringe Exchange Programs Helpful or Harmful? New Evidence in the Wake of the Opioid Epidemic

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  • Analisa Packham

Abstract

In light of the recent opioid crisis, many public health entities have called for an expansion in syringe exchange programs (SEPs), which provide access to sterile syringes and facilitate safe needle disposal for injection drug users. This paper investigates the effects of recent SEP openings on HIV diagnoses and drug-related overdoses in the wake of the opioid crisis. I find that SEP openings decrease HIV diagnoses by up to 18.2 percent. However, I present new evidence that SEPs increase rates of opioid-related mortality and hospitalizations, suggesting that needle exchanges alone may be less effective than other interventions at stimulating recovery.

Suggested Citation

  • Analisa Packham, 2019. "Are Syringe Exchange Programs Helpful or Harmful? New Evidence in the Wake of the Opioid Epidemic," NBER Working Papers 26111, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:26111
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Molly Schnell & Janet Currie, 2018. "Addressing the Opioid Epidemic: Is There a Role for Physician Education?," American Journal of Health Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 4(3), pages 383-410, Summer.
    2. Kosali Simon & Aparna Soni & John Cawley, 2017. "The Impact of Health Insurance on Preventive Care and Health Behaviors: Evidence from the First Two Years of the ACA Medicaid Expansions," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 36(2), pages 390-417, March.
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    5. Thomas C. Buchmueller & Colleen Carey, 2018. "The Effect of Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs on Opioid Utilization in Medicare," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 10(1), pages 77-112, February.
    6. Jeff DeSimone, 2005. "Needle exchange programs and drug injection behavior," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 24(3), pages 559-577.
    7. Swensen, Isaac D., 2015. "Substance-abuse treatment and mortality," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 13-30.
    8. Doleac, Jennifer & Mukherjee, Anita, 2018. "The Moral Hazard of Lifesaving Innovations: Naloxone Access, Opioid Abuse, and Crime," IZA Discussion Papers 11489, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    9. Anca M. Grecu & Dhaval M. Dave & Henry Saffer, 2019. "Mandatory Access Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs and Prescription Drug Abuse," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 38(1), pages 181-209, January.
    10. Justin Wolfers, 2006. "Did Unilateral Divorce Laws Raise Divorce Rates? A Reconciliation and New Results," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(5), pages 1802-1820, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Alexander Ahammer & Martin Halla, 2022. "The intergenerational persistence of opioid dependence: Evidence from administrative data," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(11), pages 2425-2444, November.
    2. Alexander Ahammer & Martin Halla, 2020. "The Intergenerational Transmission of Opioid Dependence: Evidence from Administrative Data," Economics working papers 2020-10, Department of Economics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria.
    3. Sim, Yongbo, 2023. "The effect of opioids on crime: Evidence from the introduction of OxyContin," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    4. Lindsey Rose Bullinger & Vivian Wang & Kenneth A. Feder, 2022. "Effects of Opioid Treatment Programs on Child Well-Being," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 703(1), pages 79-105, September.
    5. Liang, Jian & Alexeev, Sergey, 2023. "Harm reduction or amplification? The adverse impact of a supervised injection room on housing prices," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    6. Cornelius A. Rietveld & Pankaj C. Patel, 0. "Prescription opioids and new business establishments," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 0, pages 1-25.
    7. Johanna Catherine Maclean & Justine Mallatt & Christopher J. Ruhm & Kosali Simon, 2022. "The Opioid Crisis, Health, Healthcare, and Crime: A Review of Quasi-Experimental Economic Studies," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 703(1), pages 15-49, September.
    8. Cornelius A. Rietveld & Pankaj C. Patel, 2021. "Prescription opioids and new business establishments," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 57(3), pages 1175-1199, October.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
    • K42 - Law and Economics - - Legal Procedure, the Legal System, and Illegal Behavior - - - Illegal Behavior and the Enforcement of Law

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