Saskatchewan government considers funding first supervised consumption site

Saskatchewan's health minister says the government will consider whether to help fund what would be the province'sfirst supervised drug consumption site.

Health Minister Jim Reiter says money for the site will be partof 2020 budget deliberations, but he isn't making any commitments at this point.

AIDS Saskatoon, which focuses on harm reduction and supports people who live with AIDS, HIV and hepatitis C, plans to open thesite in the new year.

Health Canada has already granted the agency an exemption whichallows it to open a place where people can take illicit drugs byinhalation, injection, as well as nasally or orally.

AIDS Saskatoon is asking the Saskatchewan Health Authority for$1.3 million in annual funding to pay for some overhead costs and staff. It wants to hire support staff, paramedics and run the site24 hours a day.

Reiter says he will push for more mental-health and addictionsdollars to be in the budget.

"Do you put funding to the safe consumption site? Do you put it to more addictions beds? Do you put it to more counsellors? Do youput it to other harm reduction initiatives and, if so, in what combination?" he told The Canadian Press.

"I have no preconceived notions on this. I want to put the money wherever it's going to do the most good."

Jason Mercredi, AIDS Saskatoon executive director, said there's areal need for a supervised consumption site and feels confident thegovernment will offer funding.

"This is a no-brainer issue," he said.

"When you look at the amount of overdoses that are happening in this community, when you look at the amount of HIV infections thatare happening ... predominantly from injecting drugs, a space likethis makes sense."

Mercredi said the agency also wants to help people who take thepotentially deadly opioid fentanyl.

"We have to make sure that we're able to support folks so thatthey can recover, but they're not going to be able to if they'reoverdosing alone in an alley or in a stairwell."

Health officials, police and front-line advocates saySaskatchewan is also seeing more people addicted to crystal meth.

Reiter said he's heard mixed opinions from health officials anddoctors about the effectiveness of supervised consumption sites inthe province. There's also been a request for more money from policein Saskatoon if the site opens.

"Generally speaking, across the country, police chiefs are saying when a safe injection site opens the demand on police
services increases," he said.

"There's other factors at play that we need to evaluate."

Mercredi believes that by operating 24 hours a day, his group's site would save the province health-care costs by getting people outof hospital emergency rooms.

The organization has already purchased and renovated a building,which is located next to the province's busiest needle exchange anda clinic which assists people with HIV who are drug users.

The supervised consumption room is designed to handle about 250people a day once it is running.

The doors to the drop-in area are already open. It's a warm placewhere people can get a cup of coffee and connect with differentservices providing income assistance, housing, addictions and family supports. Last week, about 500 people came through the drop-in centre, Mercredi said.

"A big thing we do is offer a sense of community.

"These folks don't necessarily feel like they have a space inthis community and they most certainly do, they just are goingthrough a difficult time," he said.

The Alberta government has formed a panel to study the impact ofthe province's existing supervised consumption sites on crime rates,property values and business.

Earlier this year, a group in Edmonton filed a lawsuit hoping toquash the permits of several injection sites near the city's
downtown. The group argued they have taken too great a toll on thecommunity. The application was rejected.

Health Canada says there are 41 approved supervised consumptionsites in cities in British Columbia, Ontario, Alberta, Quebec and,now, Saskatchewan. Three of them are not yet open.

Health Canada's website also lists seven other applications for sites in Ontario, Alberta and Manitoba.