told a Kanawha County HIV task force meeting last month. “There are likely many more undiagnosed cases in the community. We are concerned that transmission is ongoing and that the number of people with HIV will continue to increase unless urgent action is taken.”Experts like Daskalakis expressed concern that local leaders ignored studies showing needle exchange programs reduce new cases of HIV among intravenous drug users.
In addition to shutting down a Kanawha County exchange program in the city of Charleston — the state's capital and largest city — police ran undercover operations against an activist group offering its own program.