By Dean Maddox, Public Safety & Crime Reporter

San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie has shut down a years-long program that used roughly $5 million annually in taxpayer funds to purchase and deliver alcohol to chronic alcoholics living in city-run shelters.

The initiative, which began during the COVID era, was promoted as a “harm-reduction” effort — providing controlled servings of vodka, beer, and wine to individuals with severe alcohol dependency in an attempt to stabilize them and reduce emergency room visits.

City officials confirmed the program will wind down in the coming months as San Francisco reviews how it allocates public money for addiction-related services.

Critics say the program is a prime example of California’s upside-down approach to public policy, where taxpayers routinely foot the bill for strategies that would be unthinkable anywhere else in the country. Supporters of its cancellation argue that buying and delivering alcohol to addicts is enabling destructive behavior.

The move comes amid rising frustration over the city’s broader addiction and homelessness crisis, with many residents questioning why basic services seem underfunded while controversial experiments continue to receive millions.