The Ontario government has announced plans to ban supervised consumption and treatment service sites within 200 metres of schools and child care centres, a move that will result in the closure of 10 such facilities across the province.
The decision, unveiled by Health Minister Sylvia Jones, follows two reviews ordered by the government after the tragic shooting death of Karolina Huebner-Makurat, who was killed by a stray bullet near a consumption site in Toronto’s Leslieville neighborhood in July 2023.
Under the new rules, municipalities and organizations will also be prohibited from launching new consumption sites or participating in the federal government’s safer supply program, which provides prescription medication as an alternative to street drugs.
The closures will affect five sites in Toronto and one each in Ottawa, Kitchener, Thunder Bay, Hamilton, and Guelph. In place of these sites, the province plans to establish 19 new “homelessness and addiction recovery treatment hubs” and 375 supportive housing units, at an estimated cost of $378 million.
“Communities, parents, and families across Ontario have made it clear that the presence of consumption sites near schools and daycares is leading to serious safety problems,” said Jones. “We need to do more to protect public safety, especially for young school children, while helping people get the treatment they need.”
The move has sparked anger among harm reduction advocates, who argue that supervised consumption sites are essential for saving lives and reducing overdose mortality rates. A recent study of Toronto’s sites indicated a 42% reduction in city-wide overdose deaths following their implementation.
“My heart sunk,” said Hannah Stahl, a registered nurse at one of the sites slated for closure. “My clients are going to be left in the lurch.”
Stahl emphasized the critical role these sites play in providing healthcare and support services to vulnerable populations, who often avoid traditional healthcare settings.
However, some residents near the South Riverdale Community Health Centre, where Huebner-Makurat was shot, welcomed the province’s new approach. Derek Finkle, who lives near the site, expressed support for the ban, citing concerns about drug-related violence and safety issues in the area.
The opioid crisis has gripped Ontario for over a decade, with deaths surging during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, the province saw a peak mortality rate of 19.3 opioid-related deaths per 100,000 people, largely due to fentanyl. Although this rate has slightly declined, it remains significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels.
The Ford government’s consumption and treatment services model, introduced in 2018, aimed to connect people with treatment rather than solely focusing on supervised consumption. The province capped the number of sites at 21, but only 17 have been funded to date. Some federally approved sites in northern Ontario recently closed due to lack of provincial funding.
As the debate over the future of harm reduction services in Ontario continues, both supporters and critics of the government’s new measures are preparing for the impact of these significant changes.
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