“Unfair”: Ontario town abandons safe drinking offer after years of delay

With a delay in approving supervised consumption sites not in sight, organizers have made the difficult decision to withdraw their application for the Barrie site.

The multi-year campaign came to an end earlier this week when the Canadian Mental Health Association of Simcoe County and Simcoe Muskoka Health District released a joint statement.

Applications for a consumer services and treatment site at 11 Innisfil Street were submitted to Health Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Health on October 7, 2021 by the Simcoe County Branch of the Canadian Association for mental health.

The application was approved federally by Health Canada on September 9, 2022, renewed in September 2023 and approved by the City of Barrie. Yet since then, applicants say they have had little communication regarding the status of their applications.

After years of uncertainty, local mental health association CEO Valerie Grdisa said applicants can no longer afford to wait.

“I think it’s unfair to drug users, their families and Ontario taxpayers that the government can’t make a decision and stick to it,” Grdisa said.

“I understand the complexity of the decision, and this is one of several interventions that need to take place, but this model of care has been proven to be effective for some people who use drugs, and all they need to do is make a decision.

In May 2024 alone, the two agencies reported there were 16 suspected drug-related deaths in Simcoe Muskoka and, on average, 25 suspected overdose visits to emergency departments in the region each week.

In 2023, 53 people have lost their lives in Barrie due to suspected opioid-related poisoning, and 26 people have lost their lives so far this year, as of June 11.

“It is clear from research conducted at CTS sites in Ontario and elsewhere that they remain a key service to help prevent serious harm to people who use drugs and increase uptake of addiction treatment and other services health and social services,” said Lisa Simon, partner. medical officer of health of the local health unit.

“They also serve the community at large by improving public order and safety by reducing the presence of discarded drug paraphernalia and public drug use.”

To apply to the Ministry of Health, the Simcoe County branch had to have space already reserved, so they began paying rent for that location. However, Grdisa said delays and lack of communication from the Department of Health led to more than $130,000 being spent on renting underutilized space.

“Since fall 2021, we have made significant investments in this site as it is a critical service to the community,” Grdisa said.

“As the months pass, more and more lives have been and continue to be lost in Barrie and Simcoe County to the opioid crisis. While we understand that these decisions require careful consideration, we are not comfortable continuing to pay rent without a response when we could be using these funds to meet other community needs.

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• The toxic drug crisis is worsening in Barrie. Ont., plans for supervised consumption site stalled

Global News contacted the Ministry of Health but did not receive a response.

In June 2023, in response to questions from Global News regarding the delay, the Ministry of Health said it had allocated up to $31.3 million in annual funding for up to 21 consumer and treatment services throughout the province. This list, however, did not include funding for the Barrie site.

“All applications undergo a rigorous selection process. Timelines for the application selection process vary; most organizations submit application materials and information over a period of time,” the statement said.

The Ford government froze its support for supervised consumption sites in August after a Toronto mother was killed in a shooting near a safe consumption site in Leslieville, an incident that some community members linked to the site itself.

Grdisa said that while she understands the government faces tough decisions when it comes to deciding what to fund, doing nothing and keeping everyone in limbo as the opioid saga continues to torment communities across the country doesn’t solve anything.

She said that while she knows the safe consumption model is effective in meeting people where they are and helping to reduce overdoses, the Simcoe County branch will continue to offer its other services to try to address the problem.

“This is a tragic outcome related to a long-standing problem regarding what I would say is a lot of corruption and poor prescribing practices related to opioids,” Grdisa said.

“I don’t really think the public understands that drug users, for the most part, are just people who live their lives, work in different industries, and who at some point became addicted to opioids – and often to because of their prescription, an injury or a health problem.

— With files from Isaac Callan of Global News

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