A judge is still reviewing the province’s decision to shut down 10 Consumption and Treatment Services sites across Ontario.
Last month, a court ruled they could remain open while the court looks into the legality of the order.
The judge has now requested more information to help make a decision in the case.
Michael Parkinson, a consultant on drug strategies and community health, acknowledged the wait for a resolution is frustrating.
“We have an applicant, who is local, and others across Ontario - many others who are eagerly anticipating some relief here,” he said. “Across the province it’s one drug poisoning death every 2.5 hours. In Waterloo Region, it’s every two-and-a-half days. We could have already lost someone in Waterloo Region because of these delays.”
The injunction allows CTS sites to stay open but, without funding from the province, most of the locations, including the one on Duke Street in Kitchener, have already closed.
Parkinson said the furniture from the Kitchener CTS has been removed and the lease on the building is coming to an end.
But those fighting to keep CTS sites open aren’t giving up.
The Waterloo Region Drug Action Team has sent a letter to the Region of Waterloo asking them to consider emergency funding.
One complication, however, is that the province has indicated it will not support the court injunction granting a suspension of CTS closures and Section 3 of the Community Care and Recovery Act prohibits municipal support for consumption services without approval from the Minister of Health.
The province has replaced the CTS sites with HART Hubs.
But, without having somewhere safe for people to consume the drugs, Parkinson worries users won’t get the help they truly need.
“People will continue to use substances in more dangerous settings. [We’re] more likely to see that happening in public, because there is nowhere else to go, particularly if you’re at the stage of addiction,” he said. “Let’s remember the Minister of Health, the premier, could reverse this decision right now. They could say, ‘Let’s keep the CTS sites open, lets support them in line with the judge’s injunction until all the charter issues can be resolved.’ That’s the kind of decision we would look for in the interest of public service, from our elected officials.”
Despite municipalities being barred from funding, a Cambridge councillor has put forward a motion to request funding from the province for Kitchener’s CTS site. Since the Duke Street building has now closed, a new potential location has been identified.
The motion will be heard at a Region of Waterloo committee meeting on Tuesday.
