Canadian Drug Policy Coalition

04/02/2026

Beeta Senedjani on behalf of the CDPC spoke at the Toronto Board of Health meeting earlier this week, raising concerns about the impacts of supervised consumption site closures.

After the first round of closures, Toronto saw an 82% increase in EMS calls for opioid toxicities, as people were pushed to use drugs without access to safer, supervised environments. The result of these closures is more emergencies, increased strain on first responders, and more preventable harm already unfolding across the city.

The Board ultimately voted to sign on to our organizational endorsement letter.

You can read the full letter, signed by more than 250 organizations, here: https://drugpolicy.ca/open-letter-re-defunding-supervised-consumption-sites-in-ontario/

04/01/2026

Despite claims from the province that the closure of CTS sites last March caused no problem, data shared at a media conference today highlight a troubling trend: Ontario-wide data shows a sharp increase in EMS calls (+69.5%) and emergency department use (+67%) for opioid-related overdoses in the period following the forced closure of nine CTS sites in March 2025 under the so-called Community Care and Recovery Act.

In the City of Toronto, EMS calls for opioid-related toxicities have increased by 82% since the closures of CTS sites, rising from 192 calls in March 2025 to 350 monthly calls in January 2026, a sharp upward shift consistent with what experts warned would happen following site closures, and starkly at odds with the prior downward trend. In Hamilton, where the city’s CTS closed in April 2025, opioid-related EMS responses rose from 66 in April 2025 to 199 in February 2026 — the highest recorded monthly count since reporting began.

Read the media release here:
https://www.hivlegalnetwork.ca/site/organizations-worldwide-denounce-ontarios-decision-to-defund-remaining-supervised-consumption-sites/?lang=en

See the evidence brief here:
https://www.hivlegalnetwork.ca/site/what-the-evidence-says-about-defunding-ontarios-remaining-supervised-consumption-sites/?lang=en

03/31/2026

Ontario is choosing to defund evidence based, life-saving healthcare 🇨🇦

By June 2026, the provincial government plans to shut down Supervised Consumption Services (SCS) in favor of abstinence-only 'HART Hubs.' We have proudly signed ✍️ an urgent letter of opposition alongside healthcare leaders and advocates across Ontario.

While HART Hubs offer some support, they cannot replace supervised consumption sites (SCS) and the low-barrier, emergency care they offer when people experience a life-threatening overdose.

The intentional exclusion of SCS at HART Hubs as well as the prohibition on needle and syringe distribution creates needless barriers to people accessing broader healthcare and social services.

Cutting these services doesn't just lose emergency care; it fractures the vital relationships between healthcare providers and people who use drugs.

These relationships are often the only pathway to further support. For example, if someone chooses to pursue abstinence, a supervised consumption site is often the very place that connects them to that care.

We are proud to stand in solidarity with our colleagues in Ontario. This letter was sent today to the Premier, the Minister of Health, and the Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions.

👉 HIV Legal Network
👉 Canadian Drug Policy Coalition

Learn more about the letter in comments 👇

03/31/2026

Today, exactly one year since the Government of Ontario forced nine Consumption and Treatment Services sites (CTS, also known as supervised consumption sites, or SCS) to close across the province, more than 250 organizations — led by the HIV Legal Network, the Drug Strategy Network of Ontario, and the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition — have sent a clear message to the Government of Ontario. Together, they are calling on the government to respect the expert advice of organizations with unparalleled experience on substance use issues, follow the mounting evidence demonstrating the clear need for SCS, and pledge to keep individuals and neighborhoods safer for everyone by reversing the misguided decision to defund the remaining eight funded CTS sites in Ontario.

Read the letter here: https://www.hivlegalnetwork.ca/site/open-letter-re-defunding-of-all-supervised-consumption-sites-in-ontario/?lang=en

_______________________________

Aujourd’hui, exactement un an après la fermeture forcée par le gouvernement de l’Ontario de neuf sites de consommation et de traitement (SCT, aussi appelés « sites de consommation supervisée » ou « SCS ») dans la province, plus de 250 organismes — mené par le Réseau juridique VIH, le Drug Strategy Network of Ontario et la Coalition canadienne des politiques sur des drogues — lancent un message clair aux autorités ontariennes. Nous appelons le gouvernement à suivre les conseils qualifiés d’organismes experts en consommation de substances; à tenir compte des preuves grandissantes de la nécessité évidente de SCS; et à protéger la sécurité de toutes les personnes et des quartiers, en modifiant leur décision malavisée de supprimer le financement des huit SCT restants en Ontario.

https://www.hivlegalnetwork.ca/site/open-letter-re-defunding-of-all-supervised-consumption-sites-in-ontario/?lang=fr

03/31/2026

Today, on Trans Day of Visibility, we recommit to following the leadership of trans and gender-diverse people in the worldwide struggle for fundamental human rights.

The rapid escalation of laws and policies in Canada and worldwide that attempt to deny the existence of trans people and erase them from public life are an affront to our collective humanity. We are committed to fighting the hate and fear fostered by our politicians with love and evidence as we help break the systems that deny trans existence and break down the barriers that prevent people from living in this world as their authentic selves.

We see you and we stand with you in solidarity.

03/27/2026

The decision to close the last remaining supervised consumption sites in and is a dangerous step backwards with devastating consequences.

Together with the HIV Legal Network, we are calling on the Government of Alberta to immediately reverse this decision.

Supervised consumption services save lives. In Calgary alone, hundreds of drug poisonings were responded to this year. If left to proceed, this policy decision will result in needless deaths of loved ones, increased rates of preventable injury and transmission of HIV and Hepatitis C, increased strain on overburdened emergency services, and increased drug consumption and debris in public spaces.

and access to voluntary treatment go hand in hand. They are both essential. Removing one will cost lives.

Read the full joint statement here:

As organizations working to advance policies grounded in human rights and public health, HIV Legal Network and the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition strongly condemn the decision by the Government of Alberta to close the last remaining supervised consumption sites in Calgary and Lethbridge and urge its...

03/25/2026

The Human Rights Committee has raised urgent concerns about Canada’s narrow interpretation of the right to life, calling for immediate action to save lives.

Key issues:
• Rising drug toxicity deaths
• Lack of implementation mechanisms
• Gaps in the legal system
• Encampment evictions and rights violations

Human rights groups urge to take all necessary steps to protect people facing homelessness, poverty, and the drug toxicity crisis—including access to housing, health care, and harm reduction services.

Read the press release here: https://drugpolicy.ca/un-committee-rejects-canadas-position-calls-for-action-on-preventable-deaths/

03/19/2026

ALERT: Ontario will end all remaining provincial funding for supervised consumption services in 90 days.

Eight sites that rely on this core funding now face closure — cutting off care for over 120,000 people across the province.

The evidence is clear: these services save lives, decrease HIV and Hepatitis C transmission, connect people to primary care and social supports, reduce public drug use, free up capacity in emergency rooms, and reduce strain on emergency responders.

If you’re in Ontario, contact your MPP and call for continued funding.

Find your MPP: www.ola.org/en/members/current

And sign on to Harm Reduction Advocacy Collective open letter: https://win.newmode.net/harmreductionadvocacycollectivetoronto/provincialcampaignscsclosure?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAdGRleAQnpFpleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAacfy-8scpBRzoZPr0sTNOIFVouf8L5C_q1Hicw2G3--tSo1IDJZvtyLMDomhg_aem_xp7-EhO_cB3yCr3GBLOPjA

03/18/2026

Earlier this month, CDPC’s Beeta Senedjani represented us at the 145th session of the Human Rights Committee in , where was reviewed under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ( ).

A huge thank you to CUPE Local 1978, the Vancouver & District Labour Council (VDLC), the Teaching Support Staff Union (TSSU), CUPE 5536, the CUPE Vancouver Island District Council, and the CUPE Metro Council for their solidarity and making this possible.

During the review, CDPC delivered our submission and engaged with Committee members to highlight the human rights implications of the toxic drug crisis. We, alongside partners from civil society, urged the Committee to question Canada’s position that Article 6 — the right to life — does not require governments to take action when lives are at risk.

Across the session, Committee members raised a wide range of issues, including Indigenous rights, MMIWG2S+, migrant justice, corporate accountability, and arms exports.

was also a focus, with questions on involuntary treatment, the criminalization of public drug use, and the need to expand harm reduction over punitive approaches.

The session included substantive engagement from Committee members on these issues, reflecting the breadth of human rights concerns raised during Canada’s review under the Covenant and the important role of civil society organizations in informing the dialogue.

The review has now concluded, and the Committee’s concluding observations are expected soon. Stay tuned for more.

03/17/2026

03/17/2026

We unequivocally denounce the Government of Ontario’s decision to end provincial funding for Consumption and Treatment Services (also known as supervised consumption services, or SCS) and order site operators across Ontario to draft wind-down plans to close by June 13, 2026. We understand that the affected sites are located in Kingston, London, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Ottawa, and Toronto.

This decision to inform sites of their defunding and closure late on a Friday afternoon when the Government of Ontario thought no one was watching underscores how indefensible it is. There is near-unanimous consensus about the negative effects of SCS closures. In Toronto alone, overdose rates in Toronto increased by 50% in January 2026 compared to January 2025 — a shocking rise that followed the closure of the majority of sites in Toronto in 2025 by the Ontario government, despite warnings from the government’s own experts that overdoses would increase.

SCS are hubs of community care and support that reduce the risk of overdose and HIV infection, backed by decades of empirical evidence proving their effectiveness. Despite this, the Government of Ontario has tried to systematically dismantle these services since it came into power. In 2018, it arbitrarily limited the number of sites that Ontario would fund. In the years that followed, Ontario continued to defund sites or refused to fund new ones. And in 2024, this government introduced the so-called Community Care and Recovery Act mandating that sites could not be located within 200 metres of schools and childcare centres while requiring municipalities to abandon the sites they supported. This forced the closure of most SCS in 2025 by starving them of funding and pressuring them to convert to an abstinence-only model that is not grounded in evidence nor has even been fully operationalized after one year.

This most recent move is a deadly one on the part of the Province of Ontario.
We are in touch with Consumption and Treatment Services operators to determine next steps. What we know right now is that more people will die without access to the lifesaving care they receive at supervised consumption sites. These sites exist within our communities and make them better and safer for everyone. We will continue to support the fight to keep them open and keep our community members alive and well.

03/13/2026

When played the for gold, provinces quickly bent alcohol rules and issued temporary permits so bars could open early. The game created clear demand for people to gather, watch, and have a drink.

People were going to celebrate, and there was a clear economic incentive to accommodate it. It’s a reminder that often adapts when profit is involved, not always when safety alone would demand it.

Instead of ignoring real-world behaviour, the rules allowed celebrations to happen in licensed venues. For alcohol, policy often recognizes that use will occur and focuses on managing risk within regulated environments.

For other drugs, policy frequently does the opposite, pushing use into hidden and unregulated spaces where risks are harder to manage.

The lesson is simple: substance use policy works best when it recognizes real behaviour and focuses on managing risk, rather than wishful thinking of eliminating use.