Harm Reduction
Definition
A public health approach that meets people struggling with addiction where they are, providing services to reduce health risks and deaths without requiring abstinence as a precondition for help. Harm reduction includes needle exchange programs (preventing HIV/hepatitis transmission), naloxone distribution (reversing opioid overdoses), safe consumption sites, and low-barrier access to treatment. This approach prioritizes saving lives and reducing suffering over moral judgments.
Louisville Context
Louisville faces an ongoing opioid crisis: 501 residents of Jefferson County died from a drug overdose in 2023 (Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy, 2024 Drug Overdose Fatality Report). Current approach relies heavily on law enforcement and requires abstinence for most treatment, limiting effectiveness. Louisville has no safe consumption sites, limited needle exchange access, and insufficient low-barrier treatment. Other cities have adopted comprehensive harm reduction to bring overdose deaths down.
Why It Matters
People are dying preventable deaths because Louisville’s approach prioritizes punishment over public health. Harm reduction saves lives immediately while connecting people to long-term recovery. Opposition to harm reduction is often based on stigma and misunderstanding—research consistently shows these approaches reduce deaths, disease, and public health costs without increasing drug use.
My Proposal
My Community Wellness Centers will offer harm reduction services: needle exchange, naloxone distribution, wound care, and pathways to treatment without abstinence requirements. I’ll advocate for Kentucky to allow safe consumption sites and expand medication-assisted treatment access. All services funded within the $1.13 billion budget, prioritizing neighborhoods with highest overdose rates.