Federal Government Sues to Block Supervised Injection Site

The federal government has given a clear indication that it will seek to block efforts to establish supervised injection sites where drug users could openly inject while also being connected to services and support. The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday filed court documents to prohibit the Philadelphia nonprofit group Safehouse from establishing a safe injection site in the city. Leaders in several U.S. cities have grown increasingly interested in establishing supervised injection sites in recent years, as part of a public health strategy to combat the opioid crisis. The Washington Post reported this week that while the District Attorney's office in Philadelphia has indicated it would not prosecute operators or clients of a supervised injection facility, federal prosecutors say plans for such a site run afoul of the federal Controlled Substances Act. Suggesting that a safe injection site would fall under the same statutory prohibition as a crack house, U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain wrote in court documents, “For purposes of this action, it does not matter that Safehouse claims good intentions in fighting the opioid epidemic,” the newspaper reported. Safehouse leaders say they will continue to push on with their plans. There are no safe injection facilities currently in operation in the U.S., despite growing calls in the public health community to consider this approach to engaging addicts and connecting them to support before potentially losing them to fatal overdose.