The Haight Ashbury Free Medical Clinic opened on June 7, 1967, at 558 Clayton Street during the Summer of Love, providing free, nonjudgmental care to the thousands of young people flooding San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury district. Founded by Dr. David Smith, the clinic operated 24/7 that summer, treating up to 250 patients per day for conditions including trauma, bad acid trips, and STDs. The clinic was guided by the principle: Health care is a right, not a privilege.

Recognizing the growing need for addiction treatment, the clinic incorporated as Youth Projects, Inc. (YPI) on August 1, 1967, and soon launched one of the country’s first outpatient heroin detox programs. At the time, detox was only available in hospitals, but Drs. Smith and Don Wesson developed an outpatient method using phenobarbital, reducing costs and expanding access. Darryl Inaba and UCSF’s clinical pharmacy team later introduced non-narcotic medications and counseling, while group therapy became central, treating up to 100 patients daily during the 1970 heroin epidemic.

Over the next two decades, YPI expanded its services, eventually rebranding as Haight Ashbury Free Clinics, Inc. (HAFCI) to better reflect its mission. Its innovative model—integrating free healthcare with addiction treatment—led to the formation of over 400 free clinics nationwide and laid the groundwork for modern addiction medicine. This movement helped establish the California Society of Addiction Medicine and, eventually, the American Society of Addiction Medicine, securing addiction medicine as a recognized board-certified specialty. The clinic’s principles also influenced the Affordable Care Act and the development of managed care models.

In 2011, HAFCI merged with Walden House, a community-based drug treatment program founded in 1969, to form HealthRIGHT 360. Today, HealthRIGHT 360 provides healthcare, addiction treatment, and support services to over 27,000 patients annually across California, continuing the Haight Ashbury Free Clinics’ mission of delivering compassionate, accessible care to underserved communities.