The R Street Institute and Open Society Policy Center host Harm Reduction Perspectives in Public Health and Policymaking August 17 at 12 p.m. at the Rayburn House Office Building, Rm. 339.

Public-health officials, policymakers and activists from both the political left and right have begun to endorse harm reduction approaches intended to minimize the harmful consequences of various behaviors, such as smoking, substance use and sexual activity.

Yet harm reduction endorsements aren’t always full-throated and are almost never universal. Efforts to reduce the harms of injection drug use by promoting safe consumption centers, syringe-access programs and other measures have received significant pushback from many on the right until the recent opioid epidemic. Many on the left and in the current administration likewise have expressed significant skepticism about the ability of e-cigarettes to reduce the harm of smoking. To date, harm reduction efforts have remained in separate silos, with few in the public health community supporting harm reduction across the board. Is this a mistake? Or is harm reduction an effective policy approach for some things and not for others?

Please join us for a joint briefing from the R Street Institute and Open Society Policy Center that will bring together a diverse group of public-health experts to consider how harm reduction can inform our policies surrounding various public-health concerns including injection drug use, tobacco use and sexual behavior.