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Norman Swan, MD

JAMA. 1999;281:1782-1783.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Sydney—Weeks of acrimonious debate about heroin in Australia have culminated in a large injection of funds into drug treatment, diversionary programs to keep users out of prison, and maintenance of the country's internationally applauded harm minimization program.

Over the past few months, several factors have come together to put intravenous drug use on the front page of newspapers almost constantly. Low heroin prices, increasing numbers of young users, and a rise in heroin-related mortality, which now exceeds road trauma as a cause of death in young people, formed the background to the politicians' positions.

Will harm minimization help him?

NO HARM MINIMIZATION

Australian Prime Minister John Howard is sympathetic to US-style "drug war" policies and skeptical about harm minimization—the policy that aims to optimize drug users' health and reduce the risks to them and others through programs such as needle exchanges and methadone distribution.

Through such . . . [Full Text of this Article]