[In response to "COMMENTARY: LGH should provide public 'sharps containers'"]

A “sharps” container at staples.com costs $42. What I use is a 500ml bottle that spring water comes in, which costs me nothing. I know people who use 2-liter pop bottles, others that use milk jugs.

The “sharps” container from staples is lockable, and it fits on a wall. My bottle is considerably smaller, and it fits in the camera case I use to carry my medicines, my insulin and my syringes, so I have it with me, even if I’m “on the go”.

I’m not sure why you think sharps containers on street corners would get used. I’ve never seen anyone give himself a shot on a street corner. It’s illegal in Pennsylvania to carry hypodermic needles concealed upon your person in Pennsylvania; it falls under the assault laws.

Safely disposing of sharps is not a big deal. I’ve never heard of a drugstore or a physician’s office declining to accept them.

Reusing syringes is discouraged by those who sell disposable syringes. Under a microscope, you can see the difference between a new and a used syringe, but most diabetics find that a syringe can be used 10-15 times before it becomes dull enough to notice. The difference between 2 syringes a week and 4 syringes a day is $34/year versus $496/year.  I can think of better ways to spend that $462 than generating toxic waste.

Your proposed program reminds me of that lifetime guarantee they have on Tupperware. It costs more money to ship back a piece of Tupperware that’s gone bad than it costs to buy something new.  If you want LGH to do something useful for diabetics, have them set up a free or inexpensive no-appointment diabetic foot care clinic one morning a week at the Health Campus. (St. Joe’s Hospital in Fort Wayne has a program like that.) When a diabetic loses a foot, it costs us all a lot of money.

Editor’s reply: We don’t take issue with much of the above but point out that the sharps containers we advocate would be in public rest rooms and certain street locations. The writer is using syringes for diabetes and need not worry about safely disposing of syringes within a plastic bottle in his or her trash.

But heroin addicts, who “shoot up” several times a day away from home, are fearful of storing or transporting dirty needles because they can be used as evidence against them in a criminal prosecution. Hence, the need for a way for them to safely dispose of used syringes in a location close to where they are being utilized.