One year later – Ford government still has no plan to address the toxic drug crisis

QUEEN’S PARK – Ontario NDP Shadow Minister for Mental Health and Addictions with responsibility for Primary Care, Dr. Robin Lennox; and Shadow Minister for Health, MPP France Gélinas, issued the following statement marking one year since the closure of supervised consumption services across Ontario:

“It’s been one year since this government shut down supervised consumption services, and the consequences are exactly what health experts warned us would happen,” said Dr. Lennox. “We are seeing more ambulance calls, more emergency department visits, and more people in crisis across our communities.”

“Supervised consumption services save lives - the evidence says so, and our front-line workers and community members know it,” said Gélinas. “Shutting them down did not make substance use disappear, it pushed it into public spaces and put more pressure on already strained hospitals and paramedics.”

“One year later, Ontarians are still waiting for answers,” continued Dr. Lennox. “There is no clear timeline for HART hubs, no plan to replace the life-saving services that were lost, and no serious strategy to address the ongoing toxic drug crisis.”

“This is reckless and ideological policymaking, and people are paying the price,” said Gélinas. “You cannot claim to care about public safety while removing services that prevent deaths and connect people to care.”

“The government needs to stop delaying and start acting,” concluded Dr. Lennox. “That means restoring evidence-based supports, delivering real timelines for new services, and putting forward a plan that actually saves lives.”