Toronto to see more emergency calls after supervised consumption sites close: top doc – Toronto [Video]

Overdoses will increase and first responders will see more emergency calls after new provincial laws shutter five supervised drug consumption sites in Toronto this spring, the city’s acting medical officer of health said in a report tabled Monday.

Dr. Na-Koshie Lamptey recommended that the city’s board of health urge the province to expand access to supervised consumption sites that comply with the new rules, including at existing locations that are expected to continue operating.

“These facilities save lives, connect people to social services and are pathways to treatment,” Lamptey wrote in a report tabled with the board of health.

“The new legislation will reduce access to an evidence-based clinical health care service leading to an anticipated increase in preventable fatal and non-fatal overdoses.”

In addition to shutting down 10 supervised consumption sites across Ontario due to their proximity to schools and daycares, Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative government has banned new sites from opening …