Last week the Phoenix City Council voted 8–1 to pass a sweeping new ordinance banning volunteer street-medicine services in city parks unless providers first get a permit from the city’s Parks and Recreation Department Cynthia Aguilar (who wrote the ordinance).
Phoenix bans syringe access, limits medical events in city parks
Beginning in April it will be a criminal Class 1 misdemeanor for volunteers to provide medical services in parks without a permit from Aguilar. Disobey by providing health related humanitarian aid without a permit & you’ll face 6 months in jail, big fines and a permanent criminal record.
The new ordinance squarely targets the services provided by Phoenix Street Medicine to persons experiencing homelessness. Phoenix Street Medicine is a program coordinated by the UA Mel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health with collaboration from UA College of Medicine, ASU, NAU, Midwestern University, and Creighton University. One of the co-founders is AZPHA Board Member Jeffery Hanna.
Their mission is simple and evidence based: meet people where they are, rather than expecting them to navigate a system that often shuts them out. The program hosts about 12 outreach events each month, mostly at Hance Park in downtown Phoenix.
The humanitarian services they provided were wide-ranging and practical, including:
- Blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, and A1c screening
- Physical exams, wound care, foot care, and other urgent needs
- Flu, COVID-19, and Hepatitis A vaccines
- Mental health screening and education
- Narcan distribution to prevent overdose deaths
- Vision screening and prescription glasses
- Help with medications, daily living needs, and referrals to clinics and community resources
The program was also an important professional-development resource. Medical, nursing, and public-health students gain real-world experience working with high-need populations under the supervision of licensed clinicians.
That training helped build a workforce that understands trauma-informed care, harm reduction, and the realities of homelessness in Arizona.
The 8-1 council vote came despite hours of public testimony from dozens of physicians, nurses, public-health professionals, service providers, students, and community members.
Many of them (including Arizona Public Health Association members) urged the council to slow down, reconsider, or narrow the ordinance. They warned that criminalizing basic medical care would make people sicker, not safer. The council approved it anyway.
The authority to issue or deny Phoenix Street Medicine permits rests Aguilar, who will have unilateral power to approve or deny permits.
Judicial review may not matter because there are no clear standards, timelines, or appeals process laid out in the ordinance. Or maybe judicial review will work because of the lack of those criteria?
My biggest concern is that Aguilar will simply refuse to issue permits to Phoenix Street Medicine, effectively shutting down the services. If (when) that happens people experiencing homelessness will lose access to basic care, and the city will see more preventable crises spill into emergency rooms and jails.
Phoenix has chosen enforcement over compassion and people experiencing homelessness will pay the price if (when) permits become a tool to block care rather than enable it.
Time will tell.
