NYC Safe Injection Sites Open In Landmark Shot To Curb Overdoses

NEW YORK CITY — A first-of-its-kind effort in New York City aims to prevent drug users from overdosing and dying in the shadows.

Supervised injection sites will open in Harlem and Washington Heights this week, officials announced.

It's the first time in the United States these safe havens — also known as "overdose prevention centers" — for people to use heroin and other drugs will open under official approval.

Mayor Bill de Blasio cast the decision as way to protect the city's most vulnerable.

“Overdose Prevention Centers are a safe and effective way to address the opioid crisis," he said in a statement Tuesday. "I’m proud to show cities in this country that after decades of failure, a smarter approach is possible."

But allowing drug users to freely inject and consume narcotics is an inherently controversial proposition.

Many neighbors oppose the sites and the potential impact they'll have on their communities.

"Think about what message this sends to the children who pass the dealers and the users who will congregate here," wrote Shawn Hill, who co-founded the Greater Harlem Coalition, a group that pushed the city to reduce drug treatment clinics in the neighborhood.

Proponents, especially those working in harm reduction, argue the facilities save lives.

More than 2,000 people died of overdoses in New York City in 2020, according to health department data. Advocates argue many of those lives could have been saved if users can be taken from the shadows and into safe injection sites with medical professionals, clean needles and ready access to naloxone, which reverses opioid overdoses.

Unofficial sites have been open in the city, but this is the first time such locations received official sanction.

“The national overdose epidemic is a five-alarm fire in public health, and we have to tackle this crisis concurrently with our COVID fight,” Dave Chokshi, the city's health commissioner, said in a statement. “Giving people a safe, supportive space will save lives and bring people in from the streets, improving life for everyone involved. Overdose prevention centers are a key part of broader harm reduction.”

Related coverage:

Supervised Injection Site Opens In Harlem In Historic Move

First Of Its Kind Injection Site Opens In Wash Heights: Report