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The province’s move Tuesday to impose strict rules on supervised drug consumption sites — and ban any more from opening — means any hopes of reviving Windsor’s SafePoint are officially dead.
Harm reduction experts immediately condemned the controversial plan, also aimed at preventing cities and organizations from funding their own sites, warning that “people will die.”
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“You will see a disaster in Windsor,” said Doris Grinspun, CEO of the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario. “This will get a lot worse. It’s a death sentence for people that use substances.”
Health Minister Sylvia Jones announced Tuesday, to repeated applause at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario conference in Ottawa, that the province will prohibit the opening of any new supervised consumption sites. It is also banning facilities within 200 metres of schools and childcare centres, which means 10 facilities now open will be forced to close.
“Our first priority must always be protecting our communities,” said Jones. “Especially when it comes to some of our most innocent and vulnerable. Our children.”
The government said in a media release that the ban on sites near school zones means sites in Ottawa, Guelph, Hamilton, Thunder Bay, Kitchener and Toronto must close by March 31.
The province will also introduce legislation in the fall that, if passed, would make it virtually impossible for a community or organization to apply for federal exemption to operate sites independent of Queen’s Park. The legislation would prohibit any municipality or organization “from standing up new consumption sites or participating in federal so-called ‘safer’ supply initiatives.”
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It would also prohibit municipalities from requesting the decriminalization of illegal drugs from the federal government.
The province is abandoning the safe consumption model in favour of spending $378-million on 19 new Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) Hubs.
“We’ve got a different solution” MPP Anthony Leardi (PC — Essex) told the Star. “It’s called the HART Hub. We think that’s the right way to go. We think that’s going to put people back on the path to recovery. We want people to get addictions treatment. We don’t want them to get drugs.”
The HART Hub will offer primary care, mental health services, addiction support, social services, transition beds, supportive housing, and other services.
“HART Hubs are not going to provide any drugs at all,” said Leardi. “They’re not going to provide any drug supervision. They’re not going to give you needles to inject yourself with. None of that is going to happen at a HART Hub.”
In the media release that followed Jones’ address, Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens called the announcement “a real game changer.”
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“This major investment will truly support people to get their lives back on track through needed treatment and recovery, while ensuring that neighborhoods in Windsor and across Ontario remain safe,” he said.
In her remarks, Jones did not specifically address the Windsor site, which closed Jan. 1 due to lack of provincial funding. But Leardi told the Star that SafePoint will not reopen.
He said there are nine existing sites in the province that can remain open, but the province will be “encouraging” them to transition to HART Hubs.
Those sites will also face tougher rules, including new requirements for safety and security plans, policies to discourage loitering, and the promotion of conflict de-escalation and community engagement.
“I have a lot of concern that instead of leading with compassion and helping to de-stigmatize addiction even further, what the government is doing is going in the opposite direction, which is going to further stigmatize those who use drugs, who struggle with addiction,” MPP Lisa Gretzky (NDP — Windsor West) told the Star.
SafePoint opened in April 2023 without provincial approvals under a federal exemption from Health Canada. The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit initially funded the site, expecting the province would step in by last summer.
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But the Ontario government refused to provide funding during a provincewide review of all 17 drug consumption and treatment services sites. The province said it was doing a critical incident review following a fatal shooting outside a Toronto CTS site last summer.
When provincial funding never materialized, the health unit’s board of directors closed SafePoint on Jan. 1.
The health unit declined comment, stating it had not received any direct communication from the Ministry of Health about Tuesday’s announcement, and was waiting for more information.
Gretzky said the government’s plan is based on ideology, not evidence.
“They’re moving forward based on their ideology rather than going forward with the compassion and the understanding and the openness that is needed to actually address the crisis,” said Gretzky, who lost a brother to an overdose.
“We’re going to continue to see more people die at the height of this crisis.”
Grinspun also called the plan a political one that “has nothing to do with evidence.”
“Many will die,” she said. “And you will see more needles in the streets. You will see more toxicity in the streets. You cannot help a dead person.”
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