TORONTO – Harm reduction workers battling Ontario’s opioid crisis say COVID-19 is making the situation worse, as police and public health officials in Toronto report a spike in overdoses and related deaths since the start of the pandemic.
Nick Boyce, of the Ontario Harm Reduction Network, said the dramatic measures that have been implemented to slow the spread of the new coronavirus are limiting drug users’ access to support services that help prevent overdose deaths. “We have these two crises where you have the drug crisis intersecting now with another serious public health crisis and the most marginalized folks are the ones bearing the brunt,” he said. “Their access to any sort of supports has been significantly reduced, if not