In 2010, there were only 39 new cases of Hepatitis C reported in North Carolina. Last year there were 186 reported to the health department. Those numbers might not stand out in a state of 10 million people. But they are alarming because they represent a fast growth in a chronic illness that already afflicts more than 110,000 people in North Carolina. And there are probably more who don't know they have it. In response, groups are trying to prevent the spread by giving addicts clean needles.
Michelle Mathis and Vicki came to the southern style restaurant in Hickory for the chicken fried steak and the salad bar. Then they headed out to Michelle鈥檚 car. She pulled out a paper bag wrapped in plastic.
鈥淚 have a kit for you,鈥� she said, 鈥淭here鈥檚 enough in here or you to share.鈥�
Mathis hands the bag of clean syringes to Vicki. The markings on Vicki鈥檚 arm are an indication of what she鈥檒l use them for - to inject heroin.
鈥淚 am a functioning addict,鈥� Vicki said. 鈥淚鈥檓 not proud of what I do and neither is Michelle, but Michelle helps me to keep a clean environment with what I do instead of spreading disease.鈥�
Vicki asked that we use only her first name, because, well, heroin is illegal after all.
She said since she and her friends have been getting clean needles from the syringe exchange for the past seven months, she鈥檚 noticed a difference in the people she shoots up with.
鈥淚鈥檝e seen many people who used to always share back and forth,鈥� said Vicki. 鈥淭hen Michelle came through and they keep backpack with their own and they don鈥檛 do that anymore.鈥�
Syringe Exchanges became legal in North Carolina last year. Now there are more than around the state. Exchanges have to register and report back to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services which reports so far they have distributed more than 1 million syringes to almost 4,000 people. can be used to buy syringes and other supplies distributed. Mathis and her wife run the exchange for seven rural counties to the north and west of Mecklenburg County with donations, grant dollars and some of their own money.
鈥淲e can see month to month the people that we serve who may be Hep C negative one month and then they start to get sick and show signs,鈥� Mathis said.
During the day Mathis is an executive assistant at a hospital. She says her faith drew her to this volunteer work. She was a minister at a non-denominational church. But a few years ago she decided rather than preaching to addicts from the pulpit she wanted to be on the streets and country roads to help them keep from spreading disease. An act Christina Caputo with North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has found quite valuable.
鈥淗arm reduction is a fantastic resource in prevention of Hepatitis C,鈥� she said.
The department estimates there are more than 110,000 people across the state living with Hepatitis C. And the reported new cases reached a 15-year high across the country in 2015. Caputo and other public health officials fear even those numbers don鈥檛 include all the . Many people don't know they have the disease because not everyone has immediate symptoms. And that鈥檚 why testing is so important. All public health departments now offer it.
鈥淭hey are not going to come to the health department or go to their doctor and get tested,鈥� Nolan said. 鈥淭hey need to be tested where they are at," says nurse practitioner Tim Nolan.
He works at an HIV clinic by day. By night he works with Mathis鈥� syringe exchange to test drug addicts for Hepatitis C and HIV. He brought a case of the finger prick tests and offers to test everyone he delivers syringes to. It takes about 20 minutes to get results.
鈥淢any of them will say well I鈥檓 already Hep C,鈥� Nolan said. 鈥淲hich is amazing to me. So it鈥檚 really out there.鈥�
The tests Nolan uses are pretty 98 percent , but need to be confirmed by a more extensive blood test. The good news for people infected with Hepatitis C is its mostly curable with medicines. The bad news...they are pricey. Last year North Carolina Medicaid spent $72 million treating just more than 1,000 patients. Which is partially why prevention is so important to John Faircloth. He鈥檚 the state representative who led the effort to legalize syringe exchanges.
鈥淲e certainly haven't solved drug problem,鈥� said Faircloth. 鈥淏ut we鈥檝e kept some people from getting Hepatitis C and other diseases. And I think that鈥檚 been a great step forward.鈥�
Faircloth was a police chief in High Point from 1976 to the early 90鈥檚. He says he wouldn鈥檛 have supported the idea of a syringe exchange back then. But now, he says, it鈥檚 become clear that drug addiction is a public health problem.
Correction: This story has been updated. An earlier version said no public funds can be used to buy syringes and other supplies for needle-exchange programs. That's not true. While state funding is off-limits, local public funding can be allocated. The story now says that no state funds can be used.
Copyright 2021 WFAE. To see more, visit . 9(MDAxNzg0MDExMDEyMTYyMjc1MDE3NGVmMw004))
