The Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network is pleased to share with you Overdue for a Change: Scaling Up Supervised Consumption Services in Canada.
Our summary brief describes the key findings and recommendations of a research project that was undertaken in 2018 to explore the current state of supervised consumption services (SCS) in Canada, to monitor legal and policy changes affecting SCS, and to identify facilitators and barriers faced by current and future SCS operators. We will be releasing the full report in February 2019.
Our research confirms that while remarkable progress has been made in recent years to scale up SCS across the country, the exceptional legal regime requiring SCS providers to obtain a federal exemption to protect staff and clients from criminal prosecution continues to limit Canada’s ability to respond to the current overdose crisis and makes SCS unnecessarily vulnerable to changes in the political context.
Normalizing SCS so they can be integrated seamlessly into a comprehensive set of services for people who use drugs must be a priority in Canada. One way to achieve this result is for the federal government to provide a class exemption from prosecution for clients and staff accessing or providing SCS that meet minimum required conditions.
A class exemption that automatically provides protection from prosecution to SCS, for any service meeting the defined conditions, would remove a significant administrative burden for SCS operators and would be entirely consistent with the federal government’s recognition that SCS are necessary life-saving services.
Unfortunately, and as illustrated by the Government of Ontario’s recent announcement of a new “Consumption and Treatment Services” model to replace SCS and low-barrier overdose prevention sites (OPS) (see our open letter in response), legal measures at the federal level, while absolutely necessary, won’t be enough to scale up SCS across the country.
Other concrete measures, including increased funding, must be taken by all levels of government to support community organizations and health care providers in establishing a wide variety of services adapted to the needs of people who use drugs.
It is time for the federal government to take leadership and work with provinces for greater access to life-saving, health-promoting SCS across the country.
Our recommendations were brought to the attention of the federal government in a joint submission to the consultation regarding the Canadian Drugs and Substances Strategy by a multi-sectoral group of 12 organizations dedicated to protecting and advancing health and/or human rights in Canada’s drug policy.
Our brief summary is available in English and French
Please watch for the full report of our research project, which will be available in French and in English in February 2019.
In solidarity,
The Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network