We were saddened to learn recently of the death of Dr. Horace Hale Harvey III on February 14, 2025, in the Isle of Wight. Dr. Hale Harvey was a formative force in the fight for safe, compassionate, legal abortion in the United States in the 1960s and ’70s. The Clergy Consultation Service on Abortion referred patients to him in the days when abortion was illegal. At the time, illegal abortions were often dangerous, done in seedy locations, by unskilled or even abusive practitioners. The clergy did find competent and safe doctors to refer to, but Dr. Harvey went well beyond that minimum standard. He provided counseling before and after the procedure; he created a welcoming and non-judgmental space; he offered small comforts, such as potholders on the cold stirrups of the procedure table. Most of all, he provided compassionate treatment and respect to his patients.
In 1970, when abortion was legalized in New York State, Hale Harvey, along with Barbara Pyle, Arlene Carmen, and the clergy, started one of the first legal abortion clinics, Women’s Services. It was staffed mostly by women, charged a very reasonable price–as little as $25 for anyone in need–offered a somewhat comfortable atmosphere, and provided amenities such as snacks after the procedure. Patients flocked to the clinic from all over the country. By 1972, Dr. Harvey had left Women’s Services, but the statistics gathered during the clinic’s first year of operation were published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Of 26,000 first-trimester abortions performed, none resulted in death, and complications were few. The clinic paved the way for safe outpatient surgical procedures of all kinds, something we take for granted now. Dr. Harvey’s humane and even empowering care for his patients set the standard for abortion clinics around the country after Roe v. Wade legalized abortion nationally–until Roe was overturned by the Supreme Court in 2022.
We are very sorry that we never had the opportunity to meet Dr. Harvey, but we pay tribute to the work he did and the legacies he left.
To Offer Compassion 