Eddie Krumpotich

Thank you, Dr. Chocolis, and for all of your hard work here across the state of Minnesota. We couldn't have done this without the Pharmacy Board's partnership. My name is Eddie Krumpetich. I'm a person of lived experience. I've been using methamphetamine since the age of 19. I have survived substance use disorder, and I'm also the chair of the Minnesota Harm Reduction Collaborative.

Thank you, Dr. Chocolis, and for all of your hard work here across the state of Minnesota. We couldn't have done this without the Pharmacy Board's partnership. My name is Eddie Krumpetich. I'm a person of lived experience. I've been using methamphetamine since the age of 19. I have survived substance use disorder, and I'm also the chair of the Minnesota Harm Reduction Collaborative.

And I also work for other organizations nationally, writing legislation and developing a grassroots mobilization around that. We were the lead writers of the legalization of drug paraphernalia and drug residue, which happened to be the very first provision of its kind in the nation.

And I also work for other organizations nationally, writing legislation and developing a grassroots mobilization around that. We were the lead writers of the legalization of drug paraphernalia and drug residue, which happened to be the very first provision of its kind in the nation.

So we are very proud of not only our partnerships with the Pharmacy Board, the Minnesota Medical Association and others, Our number one and most important goal here is that we save lives and we represent Black, brown, indigenous communities who are the most disproportionately affected by substance use and the criminalization efforts that have resulted.

So we are very proud of not only our partnerships with the Pharmacy Board, the Minnesota Medical Association and others, Our number one and most important goal here is that we save lives and we represent Black, brown, indigenous communities who are the most disproportionately affected by substance use and the criminalization efforts that have resulted.

So I'll turn this over to Pearl, who is one of my partners and one of those individuals who helped pass this law.

So I'll turn this over to Pearl, who is one of my partners and one of those individuals who helped pass this law.

Clarence, that's a good question. So we know that drug use happens. So just say no instilled this ideal that either you say no to drugs or you use drugs and you're a bad person, right? We know that those criminalization efforts have not worked. I'm going to give you a little statistic here, which is just, I mean, incredible.

Clarence, that's a good question. So we know that drug use happens. So just say no instilled this ideal that either you say no to drugs or you use drugs and you're a bad person, right? We know that those criminalization efforts have not worked. I'm going to give you a little statistic here, which is just, I mean, incredible.

Since 1970 up to 2015, criminalization has increased in the state of Minnesota 282%. In that time, overdoses increased 342%. So we knew it wasn't working. And so what we had to acknowledge was if people are using substances, how do we keep them alive long enough so they can make good choices in their life for them and their community? So decades of research got put into this.

Since 1970 up to 2015, criminalization has increased in the state of Minnesota 282%. In that time, overdoses increased 342%. So we knew it wasn't working. And so what we had to acknowledge was if people are using substances, how do we keep them alive long enough so they can make good choices in their life for them and their community? So decades of research got put into this.

And they said, wow, we really missed the boat here. And we said, we need to make you safer. We need to make it more accessible to public health initiatives. And so what we did was we redefined what substance use was. You weren't a bad person if you were using substances. You had a chronic or semi-chronic or condition that could be treated.

And they said, wow, we really missed the boat here. And we said, we need to make you safer. We need to make it more accessible to public health initiatives. And so what we did was we redefined what substance use was. You weren't a bad person if you were using substances. You had a chronic or semi-chronic or condition that could be treated.

But we also wanted to put that onus on the person who was using substances. And what we found was, is that if you tell somebody to use unused supplies, like unused syringes or unused paraphernalia, They were 50 percent less likely to incur an infectious disease like HIV. That's an astronomical number. And otherwise, there was a five times higher likelihood that you would go to treatment.

But we also wanted to put that onus on the person who was using substances. And what we found was, is that if you tell somebody to use unused supplies, like unused syringes or unused paraphernalia, They were 50 percent less likely to incur an infectious disease like HIV. That's an astronomical number. And otherwise, there was a five times higher likelihood that you would go to treatment.

So, I mean, you really did hear that right. So if just say no, didn't increase treatment, harm reduction, saying drug use is OK, we're going to use safely. increases treatment five times the national average. So harm reduction just meets somebody where they're at in their substance use, how to be safer, how to make communities safer, and get people over to public health.

So, I mean, you really did hear that right. So if just say no, didn't increase treatment, harm reduction, saying drug use is OK, we're going to use safely. increases treatment five times the national average. So harm reduction just meets somebody where they're at in their substance use, how to be safer, how to make communities safer, and get people over to public health.

Yeah, sure. So let's go out to the bar for a second and you have a glass of beer, right? You have your favorite IPA. That glass would be considered paraphernalia. Okay. So you pick up the glass, you use the glass to drink the beer. That glass is paraphernalia. The residue would be like what's left over, the foam, the bubbles, and that little bit of beer at the bottom.

Yeah, sure. So let's go out to the bar for a second and you have a glass of beer, right? You have your favorite IPA. That glass would be considered paraphernalia. Okay. So you pick up the glass, you use the glass to drink the beer. That glass is paraphernalia. The residue would be like what's left over, the foam, the bubbles, and that little bit of beer at the bottom.