13 Facts About Phil Harvey

Phil Harvey was an American entrepreneur, philanthropist and libertarian who set up large-scale programs that delivered subsidized contraceptives in poor countries.

Phil Harvey attended Harvard College from 1957 and received his bachelor's degree in 1961 in Slavic languages and literature.

Phil Harvey then joined the international charity CARE in 1963 to work in India.

Phil Harvey returned to the US in 1969 and enrolled in the University of North Carolina's master's degree program in family planning administration.

Phil Harvey served as executive director of PSI from 1970 to 1977 and remained on the PSI Board until 2003.

Phil Harvey founded DKT International in 1989 and stepped down as its president and chief executive on December 31,2013.

Phil Harvey died from natural causes in Bethesda, Maryland, on December 2,2021, at the age of 83.

Phil Harvey realized the potential of mail order when, at the University of North Carolina, he joined forces with Tim Black to begin selling condoms through the mail.

Between 1977 and 2007, Phil Harvey was involved in several legal battles with the US and New York state governments, in which he both challenged and defended himself against governments he believed were debasing First Amendment rights.

In 1987, while embroiled in the prosecutions of the Reagan Administration, Phil Harvey challenged the US government for its "Mexico City Policy", an on-again, off-again policy first enacted by President Ronald Reagan in 1984 which requires all non-governmental organizations receiving federal funding to refrain from performing or promoting abortion services as a method of family planning in other countries.

Phil Harvey believed that the pledge was a form of coerced speech and that it would interfere with HIV prevention efforts.

On December 31,2013, Phil Harvey stepped down as president of DKT after 24 years.

Phil Harvey continued to serve DKT as chairman of the Board of Directors during the remaining years of his life.