New supervised consumption sites in Ontario on hold until review complete

Ontario’s associate minister for mental health says the province has paused approving new supervised consumption and treatment sites while a review of all sites is underway.

Michael Tibollo says everything is on the table with the review, including the locations of treatment and consumption sites.

The province launched a “critical incident review” in the summer after a 44-year-old mother of two was killed by a stray bullet near a consumption site in Toronto’s east end following a physical altercation between three men.

Police have laid charges against several people in the death of Karolina Huebner-Makurat, including accessory after the fact and obstructing justice counts laid against a woman who works at the South Riverdale Community Health Centre.

Huebner-Makurat’s death sparked outrage and a debate over supervised consumption sites.

Tibollo says the province is not looking at shutting down any of the province’s 17 supervised consumption and treatment sites.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 5, 2023.

The Canadian Press