City of Portland’s Syringe ‘Exchange’ Hands Out Thousands More Needles Than They Collect

Since 2020, the City of Portland’s Syringe Service Program has distributed thousands more hypodermic needles annually than were collected, according to a Portland Health & Human Services Department memo.

The Monday memo was prepared by city staff after a request from Portland Mayor Mark Dion, in response to public concern over needles being observed littering public and private property in Portland.

Syringe Service Programs throughout the state are overseen and primarily funded by the Maine Center for Disease Control & Prevention (MECDC), which partners with local nonprofits to give out and collect clean hypodermic needles.

[RELATED: Sanford Suspends Syringe Exchange Program, Cleans Homeless Encampment…]

The rules governing the state’s needle exchange program have undergone several significant changes since the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing government lockdowns.

Prior to the pandemic, state policy limited the needle exchange programs to handing out and collecting syringes at a 1:1 ratio.

That limit was removed in March 2020, when the programs were allowed to give out up to 10 needles to each client, and the requirement for clients to hand in needles in order to receive them was removed.

The cap of 10 needles was raised to 50 in April 2021.

Although the pre-pandemic 1:1 exchange ratio was reinstated in August 2021 after Gov. Janet Mills’ State of Emergency ended, in September 2022 the MECDC again removed the exchange requirement and raised the distribution cap to 100 syringes per client.

[RELATED: State Rep Ann Fredericks Requests Resolution to Reform Maine’s Syringe Exchange Program…]

Portland’s needle exchange, located at 39 Forest Avenue and referred to by the city as simply “The Exchange,” is part of the city’s “suite of harm reduction services,” Portland HHS Interim Director Dena Libner wrote in a June 10 staff memo.

Those “harm reduction” services, in addition to distributing syringes, include wound care, Hepatitis A/B vaccinations, HIV testing and general medical referrals.

“Harm reduction is an evidence-based strategy to engage with people who use drugs, equipping them with life-saving tools and information to create positive change in their lives and potentially save their lives,” Libner wrote.

Data shared by Libner in the staff memo indicates that since 2020, the city has distributed thousands — in some years, hundreds of thousands — more needles than they collected.

[RELATED: Maine Reports Nearly 10,000 Drug Overdoses in 2023, 16 Percent Decrease in Fatal Overdoses from 2022…]

In 2023, after the MECDC allowed the Syringe Service Programs to distribute up to 100 needles per client without collecting any, Portland’s “Exchange” gave out 806,951 needles, while collecting 574,126.

From the start of this year until May 5, the city has distributed over 250,000 syringes — about 75,000 more than they have collected.

It is noted on the chart that the number of syringes collected by the city annually includes discarded needles that are picked up by City of Portland staff.

Portland city staff regularly collect used syringes from over 50 sharps containers spread throughout the city, and respond to public requests to clean up needles that are found on public sidewalks, streets and parks.

According to Libner, the wide gap between the number of needles handed out and collected by the city may be accounted for by some of their clients living in other Maine towns or cities.

[RELATED: Portland Police Report End of Year Surge in Drug Overdoses…]

Those clients, Libner wrote, “due to the distance of their home from Portland, they may request a higher number of clean syringes than a Portland resident would, eventually discarding them closer to home.”

The memo regarding the city’s needle exchange program is set to be discussed during the Portland City Council’s Health and Human Services and Public Safety meeting on Tuesday, June 11.