Kim Powers Bio

Kim Powers currently serves as the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Harm Reduction

Workforce Coalition (MAHRWC) and is the Founder and Executive Director of Access HOPE

(Ahopecc) a community based Harm Reduction Outreach program providing life saving services

to people across the Cape and Islands

Kim has 4 decades of experience building low barrier health systems for marginalized

communities, Fueled by unwavering hope and a fierce commitment PWUD and PLWH she

joined the Harm Reduction movement through ACT UP Boston in the late 1980’ where she was

a founding member of the IV League, an underground syringe exchange in Boston during the

height of the HIV/AIDS crisis.

In 1996 she founded the Sex Worker Advocate Group (SWAG)—a groundbreaking,

no-judgment space for people engaged in sex work across Massachusetts. Now more than 360

consecutive monthly meetings (famously known as Condoms & Cookies), SWAG stands as a

testament to consistency, dignity, and community-led care.

sKim is Member of the DPH Massachusetts Harm Reduction Advisory Council (HRAC) and a

frequent expert witness for the SJC and State Legislature regarding Harm Reduction Policies.

Kim was a key contributor during a pivotal legal battle the case led to a landmark 2017

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) ruling which affirmed that private organizations

can legally distribute syringes without local municipal approval, effectively changing how needle

exchange laws are enforced statewide.Her perspective on the evolution of the field—from the

HIV/AIDS era to the current opioid crisis—is documented in the Harm Reduction in

Massachusetts Oral History Project. Her work has always been grounded in one core belief.

“We act as catalysts for community resilience, dismantling systemic inequities and fighting for a

future where compassion replaces stigma—and where the people doing this work have the

Support they need to sustain it."

Decades of experience: Powers has been a part of the harm reduction movement for more than 30 years. Before founding Access HOPE, she was the health outreach coordinator for the AIDS Support Group of Cape Cod (ASGCC).
Mission: Access HOPE is a grassroots mobile outreach program run by a team with lived and living experience. It provides confidential, low-barrier services and resources directly to people who use drugs in the places they are.
Overdose prevention: Through Access HOPE, Powers distributes life-saving supplies, including the overdose reversal medication Narcan (naloxone) and drug-checking equipment like fentanyl test strips.
Social justice and advocacy: The organization advocates for social justice and strives to address systemic injustices that impact the communities it serves. Powers is a vocal advocate for harm reduction practices and the legalization of harm reduction centers.
Funding and support: Access HOPE is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The program has received support from entities like RIZE Massachusetts, and state funding has helped the organization expand its impact.

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