VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- Canada's Supreme Court ruled Friday the controversial Insite clinic, North America's only legal drug-injection clinic, can stay open.
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court dismissed the federal government's claim that the Vancouver clinic promotes addiction, the BBC reported.
The ruling upholds two lower court rulings that said Insite should be allowed to operate exempt from federal drug laws, CBC News reported.
"Insite saves lives. Its benefits have been proven. There has been no discernible negative impact on the public safety and health objectives of Canada during its eight years of operation," said the ruling, written by Chief Justice Beverly McLachlin.
Supporters of the clinic, which provides clean needles, medical supervision and a sanitary place for addicts to inject drugs, say it helps prevent overdose, reduces infection and has decreased crime since it opened in 2003.
Since Insite opened, overdose deaths have declined by 35 percent in the area of the clinic, Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, compared with 9 percent city-wide, a study in medical journal The Lancet shows.
The British Columbia Center for Excellence in HIV/AIDS said that since Insite opened, there has been a 30 percent increase in the number of addicts who enter detox programs.
