Eberland said needle-exchange programs have multiple benefits.
"In every single program in the country and around the world, there has been a reduction in needle sharing and an increased referral of people to drug treatment," he said.
Arlos also cited studies showing that the programs have not increased drug usage.
In 1992, syringe sharing became the number one mode of AIDS infection in Massachusetts, surpassing male homosexual sex, according statistics from the Massachusetts Department of Health quoted in a Boston Globe article Thursday.
According to Eberland, the rate of drug treatment referrals in Boston and Cambridge is the highest of any program in the country.
Thirteen percent of the Massachusetts program's 1200 drug users have undergone treatment since they enrolled, the Boston Globe reported.
In March, the state department of public health will collect and evaluate data from the program.
Based on this evaluation, the department will make policy recommendations to the state legislature, Arlos said.