The Biden administration addressed a social media firestorm today by saying that it will not pay for safer pipes to smoke crack or meth under a grant program to counter harm from illicit drugs.
As political right anger crested over the Internet, some of it with racial overtones, the White House was put on the defensive, as per Staradvertiser report.
“No federal funding will be used directly or through subsequent reimbursement of grantees to put pipes in safe smoking kits,” Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and White House drug policy adviser Rahul Gupta said in a jointly.
In a separate statement, White House press secretary Jen Psaki denied any intention to pay for drug pipes, and complained of “inaccurate reporting.”
Earlier this week, federal agencies and local governments had the deadline to apply for money to fund “harm reduction” programs for people addicted to illicit drugs. It is controversial to provide a space for drug users to inject and be monitored for overdoses as part of harm reduction. Public health advocates note that it prevents bad situations from getting worse, but critics contend it enables drug use.
In the original Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration request for funding proposals, “safe smoking kits/supplies” were listed among the items that taxpayer funds could be used to purchase. Overdose prevention drugs, medication lockboxes, infection test kits, and syringe disposal containers were among the dozen categories. Although pipes can be part of a safe smoking kit, the grant solicitation did not specifically mention them.
According to Daniel Raymond, director of policy for the National Viral Hepatitis Roundtable, only a few programs in the U.S. have distributed safe smoking kits.
“None of this was being done with federal funds,” Raymond stated.
“I feel very confident in saying that. I would have been aware if that were true.”
Despite this, reports that the Biden administration purchased “crack pipes” with federal dollars went viral. Several Republican senators condemned the administration.
Tom Cotton, a Republican senator from Arkansas, tweeted: “Last week, Biden talked about being tough on crime. This week, the Biden Admin announced funds for crack pipe distribution to “advance racial equity.”
Tuesday night, Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn tweeted, “End government-funded crack pipes.”
Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida called the purported pipe distribution “insanity” in a video posted to Twitter, which by this afternoon had 245,000 views. “The Biden administration is going to be sending crack pipes and meth pipes targeting minority communities in this country,” he said.
On social media, some users even suggested that Biden and other Democrats would be giving out crack pipes during Black History Month.
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“Joe Biden is handing out crack pipes to help ‘racial equity’… during Black History Month,” Errol Webber, a Black Republican candidate for California’s 47th Congressional District, tweeted. “No I’m not joking. No I’m not lying. This is what he thinks of our community.”
According to Sarah Lovenheim, who spoke at today’s White House briefing, such reports are “blatant misinformation”.
“They were never a part of the kit,” Psaki said.
“It was inaccurate reporting and we wanted to put out information to make that clear.”
Today, Rubio released a statement saying, “I am glad the Biden administration acknowledges sending crack pipes to our nation’s addicts is a bad idea.”
Those advocating harm reduction were concerned that the blow-up would hamper efforts to get drug users out of the shadows.
Law and health science professor Leo Beletsky said he was disappointed by the White House’s response.
“This administration has said repeatedly they are making harm reduction one of their key priorities,” Beletsky said.
“As soon as there’s a little right-wing echo chamber pushback against something that is quite sound and rooted in science, they backtrack. They put their tail between their legs and back pedal.”
But administration officials Becerra and Gupta said they continue to stand by “proven harm reduction strategies like providing naloxone, fentanyl test strips, and clean syringes.”
Further, HHS stated that the harm reduction grants must comply with local, state, and federal laws, and crack pipes are illegal in many jurisdictions.
It is possible for homemade pipes to break easily or emit toxic fumes when used for smoking crack or methamphetamine. The kits may include safer pipes because of this.
In addition to supplies for cleaning hands, a pipe, or lip balm for cracked lips, these kits can also include other items, Raymond said. Giving away these kits may be an effective way to engage drug users in a conversation that might lead to change.
