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PSAM Urges Philadelphia Mayor to Veto Legislation Restricting Crucial Medical Services
On May 20, the Pennsylvania Society of Addiction Medicine (PSAM) sent a letter to Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker urging her to veto Council Bill #240665. This legislation would restrict the operating hours and capacity of mobile medical service providers in the city’s 7th district. These mobile service providers perform crucial services like overdose reversal.
In the letter, PSAM noted that an estimated 1,100 Philadelphians lose their lives to drug overdose annually. In recent years, the number of fatal overdoses in the city has declined, partially due to harm reduction efforts like the enhanced distribution of naloxone. PSAM emphasized the important role the mobile medical providers play in preventing overdose and improving public health in their community. Notably, these medical providers distribute harm reduction materials such as naloxone, fentanyl test strips, and safe syringes. As such, if the capacity of these services is limited, then public health in the community will suffer. Additionally, PSAM expressed sympathy for community concerns about public disorder in the 7th District. However, PSAM argued that scaling back mobile medical services would only worsen the situation for all and likely increase the number of overdose deaths in the neighborhood. For these reasons, PSAM called on Mayor Cherelle Parker to veto Council Bill #240665.