A new study that wants to find a way to train drug addicts to distribute COVID-19 rapid tests to other drug addicts is receiving $1 million in funding from the Biden administration.
The study is funded by the National Institute of Health and conducted by the University of Oregon. It started on December 1 and will last for roughly two years, Fox News reported.
The summary of the study says that “people who inject drugs” are more susceptible to COVID-19 outbreaks because of “structural disadvantage, health vulnerabilities, and stigmatization that prevents adequate access to medical care.”
Now the issue will be addressed in the study by the “facilitation of rapid testing by people who inject drugs (PWID) via a supported employment program that trains PWID as peer health workers.”
The study acknowledged in its summary that other studies have looked into effective ways to distribute COVID tests in communities with drug users. However, this study says that more information is needed on rapid test distribution.
"Rapid tests may offer an advantage over PCR tests for PWID experiencing structural vulnerabilities such as houselessness and lack of access to technology so that they can receive results in real-time and be quickly connected to needed resources," the summary said.
The efforts continue to show the Biden administration's focus on reducing risks that come with drug use instead of reducing drug use. Now, the new funds from the NIH will be the next part of the administration’s “harm reduction” plans.
This year, another study funded by the NIH that placed harm-reduction vending machines full of drug-use equipment in rural Kentucky.
Also this year, $30 million in grants were provided by the Department of Health and Human Services to its newly launched harm reduction program. The grants provided help to distribute more drug paraphernalia, like “smoking kits” containing things like crack pipes, Fox News reported. However, the agency has said pipes are banned in its program.
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