NDP MPP Gretzky reacts to the Auditor General of Ontario’s Report
QUEEN’S PARK –NDP MPP Lisa Gretzky (Windsor West) released the following statement on the Auditor General’s new bombshell report which outlines negligence from the Ford government on multiple files, including the opioid crisis in Ontario:
“Addictions can impact any one of us - our loved ones and our community members. Everyone deserves to feel safe in their communities and get health care and addiction support where and when they need it.
“There was no data, planning, or public consultation utilized to justify the government closing consumption and treatment services sites. It is deeply concerning to see this government so far behind in addressing the opioid crisis that is impacting every corner of this province.
“By taking away key public health care services in the middle of an addiction crisis - against best evidence - the government is choosing to put lives and communities at risk, putting additional strain on our already under-resourced emergency rooms and first responders. This government must look at the data and evidence and listen to healthcare experts to help save lives and make communities safer.”
Background:
The Auditor General’s report noted that the Conservative government failed to:
- Effectively implement their own 2016 opioid strategy
- Effectively oversee and coordinate delivery of evidence-based services in an equitable, integrated, and timely manner and in accordance with legislation, policies, and agreements
- Adequately and proactively monitor opioid prescribing and dispensing practices
- Outcomes of the 2016 strategy were not consistently tracked, measured, or reported
- Track rate of hospitalization for overdose, percentage of people who were prescribed opioids who developed an addiction
She also noted:
- The Ministry created the Mental Health and Addictions Centre of Excellence within Ontario Health in 2020 to implement the Roadmap to Wellness but after four years there is no reliable validated and standardized data. The lack of data had made it difficult to identify service gaps and improve services.
- The Ministry had identified 24 performance indicators, 20 were identified during the 2019 audit on addictions treatment programs – only 10 were tracked consistently, the remaining 14 were not.