Unsure future for Hamilton supervised injection sites

Ford government caps number of sites at 21 in Ontario, and 26 are seeking to set up a clinic

Hamilton’s prospects for longerterm supervised injection services amid an opioid crisis are looking hazy.

The Ontario government’s new cap of 21 sites across the province would cut out a number of agencies hoping to offer services.

Wesley Urban Ministries, which has applied to establish a mobile service in Hamilton, is hoping for the best.

“We’re basically all waiting,” Andrea Buttars, Wesley spokesperson, said Wednesday.

This week, Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott announced the province had concluded a review of supervised consumption services she began in July.

Elliott noted the sites proved their worth, but said they’re “not sufficient as standalone entities” without connections to addiction treatment, and other health and social services.

The province is requiring existing and aspiring operators to apply under a new “Consumption and Treatment Services” model capped at 21 sites.

The Progressive Conservatives say they’ll provide roughly $30 million annually for the network, but community health agencies are worried about gaps.

There are 18 open applications for supervised consumption sites in Ontario, including two from Hamilton. Add to that the eight Health Canada notes are already operating and the total reaches 26.

This doesn’t include a number of temporary overdose-prevention sites, meant to be emergency stopgaps, including one in downtown Hamilton whose funding runs dry Nov. 30.

The Urban Core Community Health Centre site has received more than 1,000 visits from clients since it opened in June with $116,300 from the previous Liberal government.

There have been no deaths, and overdoses have been handled at the Rebecca Street site with oxygen or naloxone under the supervision of medical staff.

Urban Core, the Shelter Health Network and public health are partners in the project.

“The one good thing is they didn’t say ‘OK, forget it,’ ” Denise Brooks, Urban Core executive director, said about Elliott’s announcement this week.

But Brooks said details of the new application process and the amount of funding that might be available should the site be approved are still unclear.

Existing sites will be able to keep operating while applying under the new system, Kent Ajo, a spokesperson with Ontario’s health ministry told The Spectator in an email.

In addition to Wesley, De dwa da dehs nye>s Aboriginal Health Centre has an open application with the federal government to establish a longer-term service.

Ottawa grants exemptions under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act to allow illicit substance use at the sites, but funding for the services flows from the province.

Brooks wonders if Ottawa could play a role if some applicants don’t make the Ontario cut. “Is the federal government interested in stepping up in any way?”

Thierry Bélair, press secretary for federal Health Minister Ginette Petitpas Taylor, said Wednesday the department is “reviewing the Ontario government’s decision.”

Last year, 87 people died of opioid overdoses in Hamilton. Fentanyl, a powerful painkiller, and mixtures with heroin are the main culprits.

Crystal meth is also a common substance clients take at the Urban Core site.