Project Prevention

Project Prevention is an American nonprofit organization focused on preventing pregnancies that may be affected by prenatal drug exposure. It was founded in Anaheim, California, in 1997 by Barbara Harris under the name Children Requiring a Caring Kommunity, commonly abbreviated as CRACK. Harris established the organization after she and her husband adopted four children, born approximately a year apart, from a mother who was addicted to drugs. Harris described the children's withdrawal symptoms and other health problems as the experience that led her to seek a broader intervention. Before creating the organization, Harris attempted to support legislation in California that would have required long-term birth control for mothers whose infants had been exposed to cocaine before birth. When that effort failed, she pursued a privately funded incentive model instead. Project Prevention offers cash payments to people who voluntarily agree to long-term contraception, including sterilization procedures such as tubal ligation and vasectomy. The organization has generally presented the program as a way to reduce the number of drug-exposed births and to prevent children from being born into circumstances in which they may face neglect, withdrawal, or serious developmental and health problems. The organization has used eligibility requirements intended to establish that a participant uses drugs or has a drug-related criminal history. According to descriptions of its program, applicants may be asked to provide evidence of an arrest for a drug-related offense or a doctor's certification of drug use. They must also provide confirmation that the selected contraceptive procedure was completed. Participants complete surveys before the procedure, allowing Project Prevention to maintain demographic and activity statistics. The standard payment described in reference material is US$300 in the United States and £200 in the United Kingdom. The organization initially varied payments according to the procedure selected, offering more for permanent sterilization than for long-acting reversible contraception, but moved to a flat-rate payment after criticism. Project Prevention's public identity has been shaped as much by controversy as by its stated mission. Its advertising and public statements have compared preventing births among people who use drugs with preventing unwanted animal breeding. Critics argue that offering money to economically vulnerable people with substance-use disorders for irreversible reproductive procedures can undermine meaningful consent and reproductive autonomy. Some opponents characterize the program as coercive, exploitative, or potentially eugenic, particularly because of its focus on drug users and its reported racial and socioeconomic implications. Other critics say the organization should direct resources toward addiction treatment, housing, healthcare, and family support rather than contraception incentives. Project Prevention has defended its approach by arguing that it lacks the resources to solve broad social problems and that a relatively small payment can prevent the much larger medical and social costs associated with caring for a severely drug-affected infant. Barbara Harris has also argued that the program protects children who might otherwise be born into unstable conditions and later removed from their parents. The organization therefore occupies a distinctive and highly contested position between public-health advocacy, reproductive decision-making, and social policy. The organization expanded its activities to the United Kingdom in 2010, where outreach in Glasgow generated press coverage and criticism from addiction charities, medical commentators, and other observers. BBC programs examined its recruitment and sterilization practices. Harris also discussed possible activity in Ireland, where addiction-service leaders rejected the concept. As of July 2024, the organization reported having paid 8,122 participants. Its current legal and operational scale, staffing, and financial position are not established by the supplied reference material.

Project Prevention began in Anaheim, California, in 1997 as Children Requiring a Caring Kommunity, or CRACK. Its founder, Barbara Harris, and her husband had adopted four children from a drug-addicted mother, taking in each child as he or she was born. The children were close in age and reportedly experienced withdrawal and other medical difficulties associated with prenatal drug exposure. Harris subsequently sought a legislative solution in California that would have required long-term contraception for women who gave birth to cocaine-exposed infants. The proposal did not become law, and Harris founded a private organization that used financial incentives instead. The organization developed a program in which people who use drugs could receive money after agreeing to long-term birth control. Eligible methods included reversible long-acting contraception as well as permanent sterilization. The program's stated purpose was to prevent pregnancies in which drug exposure could harm a fetus, while its public messaging emphasized the future welfare of children and the burden placed on parents and social services. Participants were required to document drug use or a drug-related criminal history and to show that the contraceptive procedure had been completed. Project Prevention also collected participant information through surveys. Its payment structure became a source of criticism. The program initially offered different amounts depending on the procedure, with higher payments associated with tubal ligation or vasectomy than with long-acting reversible contraception. Following criticism, the organization adopted a flat payment structure. The amount described in reference material is US$300 for United States participants and £200 for participants in the United Kingdom. Project Prevention attracted intense opposition because of the relationship between cash, addiction, poverty, and irreversible reproductive decisions. Critics argued that a person experiencing substance dependence or financial hardship might not be able to make a fully voluntary choice when offered money for sterilization. Reproductive-rights advocates and other commentators described the approach as coercive or eugenic, while addiction professionals argued that the organization should prioritize treatment, housing, healthcare, and rehabilitation. The organization's slogans and Barbara Harris's comparisons between human reproduction and animal sterilization intensified the controversy. Harris defended the program by saying that the organization was not equipped to resolve national problems such as poverty, housing, nutrition, education, or rehabilitation. She argued that spending a small amount to prevent a drug-exposed birth was preferable to incurring much larger costs later. She also presented the work as a child-protection effort, asserting that children born to parents unable to care for them could suffer harm or be removed from their families. In later comments, Harris used less provocative language but maintained that the interests of children should be considered alongside adults' reproductive rights. In 2010, Project Prevention began operating in the United Kingdom. Outreach in Glasgow led to a complaint from a woman who said she had been approached with an offer of £200 for sterilization despite not being a drug addict. The episode prompted police advice and renewed criticism. UK addiction organizations described the model as exploitative or morally unacceptable. The British Medical Association did not adopt a specific position on Project Prevention but emphasized that doctors must assess decision-making capacity and should explain reversible contraception options. BBC television programs subsequently investigated the organization's activities in Britain and Scotland. Harris said in 2010 that the organization might expand to Ireland. Irish addiction-service leaders responded negatively, describing sterilization incentives for people with addictions as inappropriate and potentially exposing the organization to future legal challenges. Project Prevention's reported activity continued beyond the initial CRACK period. By July 2024, reference material stated that it had paid 8,122 participants. The supplied sources do not establish a complete account of its current leadership, funding, legal structure, annual budget, or present program footprint. The organization remains best known for its cash-incentivized contraception model and the ethical debate surrounding it.

• 2024

  Reported participant total reaches 8,122

  [1]Project Preventionen.wikipedia.org

  As of July 2024, reference material reported that Project Prevention had paid 8,122 people.

• 2010

  United Kingdom operations begin

  [1]Project Preventionen.wikipedia.org

  Project Prevention began operating in the United Kingdom, where its recruitment and payment model quickly attracted public and professional criticism.

• 2010

  BBC documentaries investigate the program

  [1]Project Preventionen.wikipedia.org

  BBC and BBC Scotland broadcasts examined the organization's offers of payment for long-term contraception and sterilization.

• 1997

  Organization founded as CRACK

  [1]Project Preventionen.wikipedia.org

  Barbara Harris founded Children Requiring a Caring Kommunity in Anaheim, California, after adopting four children born to a drug-addicted mother.

A controversial harm-prevention nonprofit positioned around reducing drug-exposed pregnancies through voluntary, cash-incentivized long-term contraception and sterilization rather than providing comprehensive addiction treatment.

• Public-health and reproductive-health program · 1997

  Cash-incentive contraception program

  Project Prevention's central offering provides a cash payment to eligible people who use drugs after they voluntarily complete a qualifying long-term contraceptive procedure. The program includes both reversible long-acting contraception and permanent procedures such as tubal ligation and vasectomy. Applicants must provide evidence of drug use or a drug-related offense, and completion of the procedure must be documented. The standard payment described in reference material is US$300 in the United States and £200 in the United Kingdom.

• Public-awareness advocacy · 1997

  Drug-exposure pregnancy awareness

  The organization promotes awareness of the risks it associates with drug use during pregnancy. Its messaging has focused on fetal exposure, neonatal withdrawal, child welfare, and the potential long-term social costs of births affected by prenatal substance exposure. This advocacy has often been communicated through deliberately provocative slogans and has been central to both the organization's visibility and the criticism directed at it.

• 2010

  Glasgow recruitment controversy

  A Glasgow woman reported being approached by people associated with the organization and offered money for sterilization. She said she was not an addict and reported the incident to police, who advised others approached in a similar way to make contact.

  Source

• 2010

  Ethical criticism of cash-for-sterilization model

  Project Prevention's UK expansion intensified criticism that financial incentives could exploit people with substance-use disorders and impair voluntary reproductive decision-making. Critics described the approach as morally questionable, coercive, and potentially eugenic.

  Source

• 2003

  Criticism of CRACK propaganda and reproductive policy

  A law-journal article criticized CRACK's public messaging and argued that the organization's campaign undermined the health and well-being of children and families.

  Source

Read more

• 2010United Kingdom outreach

  United Kingdom

  Project Prevention promoted its payment program in the United Kingdom, including outreach in Scotland and offers of £200 for qualifying long-term contraception or sterilization.

  Outcome. The expansion led to police advice, documentary coverage, and condemnation from several UK addiction and social-service organizations.

  Source
• 1997CRACK birth-prevention campaign

  United States

  The organization launched its original campaign under the CRACK name, combining public messaging about prenatal drug exposure with payments for long-term contraception and sterilization.

  Outcome. The campaign established the organization's distinctive operating model but also generated sustained criticism concerning consent, reproductive rights, and eugenics.

  Source

• 2010

  Expand operations to the United KingdomStrategy

  Background

  The organization sought to apply its United States model in another national setting.

  Action taken

  Project Prevention began UK operations and offered eligible participants £200 for qualifying long-term contraception or sterilization.

  Aftermath

  The expansion generated criticism from UK addiction charities and medical commentators and became the subject of BBC investigations.

  Source

• 1997

  Adopt a private incentive model after legislative effort failsStrategy

  Background

  Barbara Harris first sought legislation requiring long-term birth control for mothers whose babies had been exposed to cocaine before birth. The proposal failed to become law.

  Action taken

  Harris founded CRACK, later known as Project Prevention, to pursue the objective through voluntary payments rather than government mandates.

  Aftermath

  The approach became the organization's defining model and the basis of continuing ethical controversy.

  Source

• Move to a flat paymentStrategy

  Background

  The organization initially paid different amounts depending on whether a participant selected permanent sterilization or long-acting reversible contraception.

  Action taken

  Following criticism, Project Prevention adopted a flat-rate payment rather than differentiating the amount by procedure.

  Aftermath

  The change simplified the incentive structure but did not resolve criticism of paying people with addictions for reproductive procedures.

  Source

1. 1Project Preventionen.wikipedia.org