The head of the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario (RNAO) said the decision not to provide funding for consumption sites is "a death sentence" for people with addictions in Ontario.
Dr. Doris Grinspun, who is CEO of the nurses association, was reacting to comments Ontario Health Minister Sylvia Jones made in Ottawa at the annual convention of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO).
Ontario will shutter 10 consumption and treatment services sites and ban future ones, in a move some experts say will lead to more deaths and public drug use.
The province will be left with nine consumption and treatment sites — including one each in Guelph, Kingston, London, Peterborough and St. Catharines, two in Ottawa, and three in Toronto. There will be none in Northern Ontario.
The health minister told Ontario's municipal leaders that she has heard from parents across the province who do not want the consumption sites anywhere near where they live.
"The parents the premier and I talk to are desperate for more to be done,” Jones said.
“That's why we will ban drug consumption sites within 200 meters of schools and child care centres.”
The government is also mandating new protections to better protect community safety near remaining sites, including new requirements for safety and security plans, as well as new policies to discourage loitering and promote conflict de-escalation and community engagement, said Jones.
A press release said the government will also introduce legislation this fall that would, if passed, prohibit municipalities or any organization from standing up new consumption sites or participating in federal safer supply initiatives.
If passed, the legislation will also prohibit municipalities from requesting the decriminalization of illegal drugs from the federal government.
Grinspun said the health minister's comments will only make things worse for people who are addicted and have no supervised place where they can consume drugs with health workers nearby, ready to give assistance.
“So we believe that the announcement of the government today of the closure of supervised consumption sites, including the one in Sudbury, which closed because of no funding — it's a death sentence that will lead to unsafe communities and higher health costs," said Grinspun.
She also criticized Ontario Premier Doug Ford for turning a blind eye to a crucial medical problem — toxic drug use.
Grinspun said Ford has begun aligning himself with federal Conservative Party of Canada leader Pierre Poilievre.
"Which is the wrong camp to be in, because it will lead to higher death,” she said. “It's a death sentence for people that use substances, because the issue today is toxic drugs, that's the issue.”
She said with the halt on any new supervised consumption sites, people with addictions will only be forced into more public areas to consume drugs and it will become a situation many people will be upset with.
Health minister Jones also told the AMO conference Tuesday that Ontario is spending millions to create new treatment and recovery centres, which she said will help give people their lives back.
"The province is investing $378 million in 19 new Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) Hubs. These new hubs are in addition to more than $3.8 billion the province is currently investing through its Roadmap to Wellness and nearly $700 million for supportive housing through the Homelessness Prevention Program and Indigenous Supportive Housing Program each year," said Jones.
Under the new HART Hubs program, Jones said new treatment facilities would provide:
- Primary care
- Mental health services
- Addiction care and support
- Social services and employment support
- Shelter and transition beds
- Supportive housing
- Other supplies and services, including naloxone, on-site showers and food
HART Hubs will add up to 375 highly supportive housing units, in addition to addiction recovery and treatment beds, that will help thousands of people each year transition to more stable long-term housing.
With a focus on treatment and recovery, HART Hubs will not offer “safer” supply, supervised drug consumption or needle exchange programs.
-With files from The Trillium
