TORONTO - A new study suggests hundreds of people will lose access to supervised consumption sites in Toronto when the province closes a few of them next year.
Researchers with Saint Michael's Hospital say that will likely mean more public drug use and more overdoses.
The Ontario government announced in August that it would close 10 supervised consumption sites across the province next spring because they were too close to schools and daycares.
Five of those sites are in Toronto, leaving another five open. A sixth centre in the city may shut down once its lease runs out next year.
The researchers combed through supervised consumption site data and found that, on average, 13-hundred-and-66 people used the Toronto sites monthly.
They estimate 561 of those people used the sites that are now slated for closure and it's unclear if they will head to a different site farther away or use drugs somewhere else.
Ontario is shifting away from harm reduction to an abstinence-based model and it intends to launch 19 new "homelessness and addiction recovery treatment hubs," plus 375 highly supportive housing units.
The supervised consumption sites slated for closure are set to be shuttered by March 31st, 2025.