HIV transmission could be slowed down worldwide if governments treated injection drug users as medical patients instead of criminals, according to a study by the International Federation of the Red Cross and reported by The Associated Press (AP). The study calls the criminalization approach a “failed policy” and recommends ways to reduce the risk of transmitting HIV from sharing needles. The study also details the countries with growing populations of injection drug users and how the virus affects them. For example, injection drug users account for 60 percent of the HIV cases in Russia, Georgia and Iran.

To read the AP article, click here.