The endless whac-a-mole of the drug war, banning one chemical as soon as three more become popular, can never be won. That just isn’t how chemistry or human nature works. But that hasn’t stopped profiteers and special interest groups from pushing the same old strategies, none of which has resulted in significantly lowering overdose deaths or making communities healthier.

It has, however, resulted in strange new drugs arriving on the street, which means harm reduction has had to evolve and respond every time something new comes along. How do we navigate all this change? By following the same principles harm reduction was founded on in the first place: meeting people where they are and reminding them their health matters.

On this episode, Narcotica cohosts Aaron Ferguson and Troy Farah speak with Claire Zagorski, MSc, LP, a licensed paramedic, and a graduate research assistant and PhD student in translational science at The University of Texas at Austin. She studies illicit drug supply contamination and composition, and drug checking implementation.

If you liked this episode, here are others you might enjoy:
Episode 74: Cannabis And Capitalism — Preventing Another Big Tobacco with Shaleen Title
Episode 47: Can Harm Reduction and Cops Coexist?
Episode 73: Oh No! Not Naltrexone! with Nancy Curran

Follow Narcotica on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and support us on Patreon. We just opened a shop where you can order Narcotica merch: narcocast.myshopify.com Help keep this podcast ad-free! Your support is appreciated!

We’re on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher and more. Tell your friends about us! Rate us! And thanks for your support!
Producers: Christopher Moraff, Troy Farah, Aaron Ferguson
Music: Glass Boy / Nomad1
Intro voice: Jenny Schaye
Image: via Flickr