Ban on safe consumption sites will increase risk of preventable deaths and illnesses, experts warn

A needle is discarded on the ground. (File image)

Advocates are calling on the Ontario government to reverse its decision to shutter all supervised consumption sites (SCS), warning the move will significantly increase the risk of viral and bacterial disease transmission.

In an open letter to the Minister of Health on Wednesday, health organizations cautioned the Ford government that its decision to close existing SCS and ban future sites from opening, including a proposed site in Barrie, would result in deaths, a rise in drug use, and increased health system costs.

"Shutting down these sites will lead to increased preventable deaths and higher rates of HIV, hepatitis C (HCV) and other sexually transmitted blood-borne infections," warns Jennifer van Gennip with Action Hepatitis Canada.

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Gennip noted that SCS help to eliminate hepatitis C as a public health threat.

"Losing them [SCS] will take us backwards. We cannot afford to ignore the evidence that supports these services as an effective means to keep our communities safer and healthier," she added.

The Canadian Mental Health Association Simcoe County Branch (CMHA SCB) submitted its application for an SCS at 11 Innisfil Street in Barrie in 2021 but pulled it in June after years of waiting on provincial approval. Federal approval was granted in 2022, but the Ontario government halted all applications the following year after a fatal shooting outside a site in Toronto.

In the letter to the ministry, public health leaders, HIV and hepatitis organizations and service providers called for an "immediate reversal of the closures, alongside adequate funding for SCS and harm reduction services."

"With health care already under strain, it makes no sense to add more pressure by taking away services. If the province doesn't change course, we will all be harmed by this short-sighted decision," concluded Ian Culbert, Canadian Public Health Association.