Following a model established in Vancouver, city officials in San Francisco are considering whether to set up a supervised "safe-injection" site for IV-drug users, KTVU-TV reported Oct. 18.

Officials and addiction experts held a symposium this week on the safe-injection site concept. "Having the conversation today will help us figure out whether this is a way to reduce the harms and improve the health of our community," said Grant Colfax, director of HIV prevention for the San Francisco Department of Public Health.

A total of 800 overdoses have occurred at Vancouver's InSite program, but none has been fatal thanks to the program's medical supervision. The program also is seen as presenting an opportunity to intervene with addicts and refer them to treatment.

But the concept was attacked by Bertha Madras, deputy director of demand reduction for the federal Office of National Drug Control Policy. "The underlying philosophy is, 'We accept drug addiction, we accept the state of affairs as acceptable,'" Madras said. "This is a form of giving up, you are treatable and we will facilitate a type of behavior that leads to a destruction of yourself, your family."

Worldwide, there are 65 such programs in eight nations, but none in the U.S. "If it happens anywhere in the U.S., it will most likely start in San Francisco," said Hilary McQuie, western director for the Harm Reduction Coalition. "It really just depends on if there is a political will here. How long it takes for that political will to develop is the main factor."