"Health & Medical News"

The government of British Columbia, Canada is distributing free crack-pipe mouthpieces in an attempt to prevent transmission of hepatitis C among drug users who pass around the pipes, The Province reported Jan. 3.

“People who smoke crack often burn their lips and have sores on their lips, and that sore can have blood in it,” explained Perry Kendall, chief medical health officer for the province. “A well-run [mouthpiece] program offers a lot of promise to reduce blood-borne diseases and to introduce people to health care and addiction treatment services as well.”

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Psychologist Bruce Alexander, a Canadian researcher who has compared popular views of addiction to beliefs about demonic possession, has been awarded the Nora and Ted Sterling Prize for Controversy, the National Post reported Oct. 15.

The $5,000 prize, awarded at Simon Frazer University (SFU), celebrates those who take unpopular positions on a variety of subjects, from gun control to prostitution to genetically modified food. Alexander won on the strength of his advocacy for Vancouver’s “four pillars” approach to drug addiction, heavily criticized by U.S. anti-drug officials for its harm-reduction approach that includes needle exchanges and safe-injection facilities for drug users.

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