Sudbury supervised consumption site closes indefinitely
Efforts to save The Spot have been unsuccessful – Sudbury’s supervised consumption site will close at the end of the day on Friday.
Amber Fritz, the site manager for Sudbury's supervised consumption, The Spot. March 28, 2024. (Alana Everson/CTV News Northern Ontario)
“It's an absolute tragedy that this community is losing this space,” said Amber Fritz, the supervised consumption site's manager.
“Folks who access the service here are absolutely devastated.”
The manager said the site had been funded by the city since it opened at the end of September 2022 until the end of last year and for the past few months by private donors while awaiting provincial funding.
“This is not just a Sudbury issue. This is an Ontario issue,” said Fritz.
“People who use drugs have the right to dignified healthcare and that’s what supervised consumption services are. We know that they save lives. We know that they save costs to the healthcare system. We know that they prevent Hepatitis C and HIV.”
The Reseau Access Network is the service provider for the supervised consumption site and officials with the non-profit agency have confirmed they have also lost another program offering peer-based wellness on the streets after funding from Health Canada ran out.
“Be trained on best practices for overdose response, they become street responders. They become referral networks out in the community,” said Heidi Eisenhauer, the executive director of Reseau Access Network.
“They are our access to members in community we would never have reached.”
Heidi Eisenhauer, the executive director of Reseau Access Network. March 28, 2024. (Alana Everson/CTV News Northern Ontario)
Over at The Spot, the manager said delays in provincial funding to keep safe consumption sites open will cost lives.
“We have heard the excuse of COVID delaying things. We have heard the excuse of this review delaying things,” said Fritz.
“I am not sure how much longer we are expected to wait or any community is because delays equal death – full stop.”
The Ministry of Health told CTV News that the Supervised Consumption Site in Sudbury was never under provincial jurisdiction but confirmed all funding applications are currently under review.
Officials with The Spot said since the supervised consumption site opened in the city there have been over 3,000 supervised consumptions and 30 overdoses have been reversed without the help of 911 or emergency medical services – calling the site a place of safety, connection and community.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
What Trudeau's podcast appearances say about the Liberals' next ballot box question
Trudeau recently appeared on four podcasts as he travels the country talking up the Liberals' latest budget, which he's pitching as a plan to inject more economic fairness into society for those under 40 — a cohort that has kept Trudeau in power since 2015 but is increasingly turning to Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.
Chants of 'shame on you' greet guests arriving for the annual White House correspondents' dinner
An election-year roast of U.S. President Joe Biden before journalists, celebrities and politicians at the annual White House correspondents' dinner Saturday.
What is a 'halal mortgage'? Does it make housing more accessible?
The 2024 federal budget announced on April 16 included plans to introduce “halal mortgages” as a way to increase access to home ownership.
Deadly six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 sparked by road rage incident
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
Opinion I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'doesn't get' the global phenomenon.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Invasive and toxic hammerhead worms make themselves at home in Ontario
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Here's where Canadians are living abroad: report
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
Harvey Weinstein hospitalized after return to New York from upstate prison
Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer said Saturday that the onetime movie mogul has been hospitalized for a battery of tests after his return to New York City following an appeals court ruling nullifying his 2020 rape conviction.