It will soon be provincial civil servants packing new needles for the exchange. (CBC)

The P.E.I. government is taking over the province's needle exchange program from AIDS PEI, effective April 1.

AIDS PEI has been running the needle exchange program for five years, handing out about 500 needles a week, but the group has found it increasingly difficult. The agency was hoping to get a grant of between $40,000 and $50,000 from the province to pay for a full-time program co-ordinator to continue the operation.

Instead, the organization received word on Friday that the government would be taking over the program.

"To be honest, I was taken aback," said AIDS PEI executive director Mark Hanlon.

"I was not expecting it. I thought at this point, the minister would certainly have stepped up and provided AIDS PEI with some funding, at least to bring the government up to code, so to speak, with other provinces across Canada. That didn't happen."

Long-term funding needed

The needle exchange program has been in crisis since December, when the agency announced it had run out of money. The City of Charlottetown and province stepped in with some short-term funding.

The province has decided it can run the program more efficiently, while at the same time opening a distribution centre in Summerside. But Hanlon worries a needle exchange can be difficult for a government to run.

"What happens to those clients who don't trust the government and wouldn't feel comfortable. Are they going to start sharing syringes again?" he asked.

Despite his disappointment, Hanlon said he wants to remain optimistic and encourage injection drug users to take advantage of the provincial service. He said AIDS PEI will work with the government to help during the transitional period.

Details of the exact locations and hours of the new operation are still being worked out.