A pioneer of abortion services in the United States has died at the age of 93 after being detained under the Mental Health Act at a Dorset hospital. Dr Horace Hale Harvey III had been suffering from paranoia and delirium following a dementia diagnosis, an inquest heard.
Dr Harvey, who was born in New Orleans in December 1931, opened one of the first independent abortion clinics in the US in Manhattan in July 1970. This came after New York State had reformed its abortion laws, allowing him to establish Women's Services, which provided safe and affordable abortions.
Combating unsafe procedures
According to the New York Times obituary, Dr Harvey became an abortion provider to "combat what he felt was an epidemic of unsafe abortions at a time when unmarried women were denied access to contraceptives, and when comprehensive sex education was discouraged". The clinic represented a significant step forward in women's healthcare access.
Dr Harvey, who had a son and daughter, later moved to the Isle of Wight where he worked for public health services. In 2014, he relocated to Dorset after his house burned down in a fire.
Research-based relocation
The obituary states that Dr Harvey had chosen the Isle of Wight because "according to his research, it had the highest average temperature and received more hours of sunlight than anywhere else in England". His methodical approach extended to his personal life choices.
In a statement read to the Bournemouth inquest, his daughter Kate described her father as "very determined" to keep healthy by walking a mile and doing 20 squats each day. She said he "enjoyed laughter and making up jokes" as well as activities such as dance, table tennis and snooker.
Final months and diagnosis
She added that he was a scholar who was "committed to Aristotelian ethics and scientific learning". The inquest heard that in late 2024, Dr Harvey was diagnosed with Alzheimer's and PTSD following the house fire 10 years earlier.
On January 22, 2025, he was taken to Dorset County Hospital having suffered a rib fracture in a fall at home. After physiotherapists expressed concerns about his ability to understand care instructions, he was assessed by psychiatrists and detained under the Mental Health Act.
Death from natural causes
Coroner Richard Middleton said that Dr Harvey was increasingly experiencing delirium and paranoia. He said that Dr Harvey was found dead in his hospital bed in the early hours of February 14.
A post-mortem examination found he died of natural causes from ischaemic heart disease and coronary artery disease. The coroner, recording a conclusion of death by natural causes, explained that the inquest had to be held by law because Dr Harvey was formally detained by the state at the time of his death.
Mr Middleton added: "I express my deepest condolences to all of Dr Harvey's family and friends for their loss."
(PA) Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
