Safe injection sites for addicted drug users in Philadelphia were announced last week as a new step city officials are taking in the nationwide fight against the opioid crisis.

These sites give users a location to inject with clean needles and medical assistance nearby in case of overdose. The purpose is to cut down opioid related deaths and bloodstream diseases caused by dirty needles. The announcement was met with considerable and widespread controversy.

In 2016, 59,000 people were victims of opioid related deaths in the U.S. President Donald Trump labeled the opioid crisis a “Health Emergency” back in October. He is quoted saying, “No part of our society — not young or old, rich or poor, urban or rural — has been spared this plague of drug addiction and this horrible, horrible situation that’s taken place with opioids.”

Philadelphia has one of the highest opioid related mortality rates in the country with 1,200 deaths just last year. The drug site being planned for Philadelphia will model the one currently in Vancouver. The sites are set up like healthcare facilities with each person provided an assigned booth and clean needles. In the 15 years that the Vancouver site has been running, there have been zero overdoses in their facility.

Controversy has surrounded the site with many believing it enables and protects drug abusers. This opposition though has not stopped Philadelphia as plans are set to continue with New York, Seattle, and other communities considering safe injection sites in their cities.