Dear members:
On May 28, organizations across Ontario are rallying at Queen’s Park to demand that government fund supervised consumption sites (SCS) and consumption and treatment sites (CTS) across the province. RNAO is participating in the rally.
Nearly 10 Ontarians die every day from toxic drugs. Ontario lost almost 3,800 people to this scourge in 2023. Communities are grieving. This is avoidable!
Join President Dr. Claudette Holloway, President-Elect Lhamo Dolkar and CEO Dr. Doris Grinspun and members of the Board to save lives. We will gather at Trinity Square at 12:30 p.m. and make our way up University Avenue (hospital row) to Queen’s Park to call on the premier and the minister of health to:
• Immediately provide funding to re-open the SCSs in Windsor and Sudbury,
• immediately provide funding to keep the SCS open in Timmins,
• expedite approvals process for all outstanding CTS applications, and
• fund SCS sites for every community in the province in need.
If you are coming from Timmins, Sudbury, Barrie, Windsor, London, the Kitchener/Waterloo Region or Peterborough and need transportation to the rally, indicate so on the registration form. Buses are being organized from the north and southwest of Ontario.
Please take also a minute to support harm reduction funding in Ontario by:
- downloading our petition and sharing it with friends, family and colleagues. Provide signed original copies to your member of provincial parliament – or mail them to Ann-Marie Morris, coordinator of RNAO’s Policy Department by May 28. You can also bring signed copies to the rally.
- signing our Action Alert.
The government must ensure the health and safety of all Ontarians. SCSs and CTSs reduce deaths, injuries, hospitalizations, emergency room visits and the incidence of HIV and hepatitis. These sites keep people alive and provide a gateway to supportive services, including addiction treatment.
We urge you to join in saving lives!
CHNIG Executive