Like so many people around the world, we at Prevention Point Philadelphia are outraged by this morning's Supreme Court ruling to overturn Roe v Wade. The foundational principle of harm reduction is that human beings have the fundamental right to make autonomous decisions regarding their own bodies. Access to non-judgmental, high-quality medical care should be considered non-negotiable. This conviction extends to choices around substance use, recovery, treatment, and reproductive rights. Abortion is a deeply personal decision and an essential medical procedure that all people should have access to in their pursuit of living healthy, safe, self-determined lives.
As harm reductionists, we at Prevention Point sadly know all too well the danger of prohibition. Denying human beings access to abortion will not eliminate this procedure; it will, however, make abortion less accessible, more costly, and more dangerous to patients in a myriad of physical, social, and psychological ways.
We stand with Americans everywhere who have made the decision to get an abortion, who have wanted an abortion but were unable to access safe care, and who are at this moment intending to seek this procedure in the midst of heightened societal stigmatization. We also stand with medical providers who risk their personal safety to offer this service. As harm reductionists, social workers, and medical providers, we will do everything possible to advance the fight for bodily autonomy and reproductive rights, and to continue connecting our city's most vulnerable people to the care we all deserve.