Colorado considers ‘safe injection sites’ to prevent overdoses

But proponents argue it’s an imperative first step to tackling drug use, with many repeating a one-argument refrain. “You can’t enter treatment if you are dead,” said Joshua Barocas, an associate professor at the University of Colorado who studies substance use disorder. “All the data suggests that people are going to do drugs regardless. ... All we are trying to do is reverse the harm that could come from what people are already doing.”