Chamber News

The Ontario government is helping create safer communities and supporting people struggling with addiction and mental health issues by approving 18 new Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) Hubs, in addition to the 9 HART Hubs that were approved earlier this year. These new Hubs are part of the province’s plan to support safer communities by investing $529 million to create a total of 27 HART Hubs across the province while also banning drug injection sites from operating within 200 metres of schools and licensed child-care centres.

The 18 new HART Hubs locations were chosen as a result of a provincewide call for proposals last summer. The 18 new HART Hubs that have been approved by the province are:

• Fourcast – Four Counties Addictions Services Team (Peterborough)
• CMHA Peel Dufferin (Brampton)
• Health Sciences North/ Horizon Santé Nord (Greater Sudbury)
• The HART of Simcoe (Barrie)
• Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare (Windsor)
• CMHA Hastings and Prince Edward County (Belleville)
• Durham Community Health Centre (Oshawa)
• CMHA Thames Valley (London)
• CMHA Algoma (Sault Ste. Marie)
• Services and Housing in Province (Dufferin County)
• Lanark, Leeds and Grenville Addictions and Mental Health (Lanark, Leeds and Grenville)
• Oxford Ontario Health Team (Oxford County)
• County of Renfrew (Renfrew County)
• Gateway of Niagara (Niagara)
• CMHA Lambton Kent Sarnia (Sarnia)
• Pinecrest Queensway Community Health Centre (Ottawa)
• Kenora Chiefs Advisory (Kenora)
• Maamwesying (Sault Ste. Marie)

All HART Hubs will have the goal of being operational by April 1, 2025. Earlier this year, the province announced that 9 drug injection sites in Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph and Thunder Bay that are required to close due to being located within 200 metres of a school or licensed child-care centre have been approved for transition to a HART Hub. This brings the total number of HART Hubs across the province to 27, 8 more than initially planned.

HART Hubs, similar to existing hub models in Ontario, including two in London, that have successfully provided people with care, will reflect regional priorities by connecting people with complex needs to comprehensive treatment and preventative services. These include a range of services to meet local needs such as primary care, mental health services, addictions care, social services and employment support. HART Hubs will also add an estimated 540 highly supportive housing units across all 27 HART Hubs, in addition to addiction recovery and treatment beds, helping thousands of people each year transition to more stable long-term housing.

“I am incredibly grateful that the Ontario Government has selected London to host one of 18 new HART Hubs. These Hubs represent a significant step forward in providing wraparound supports for individuals facing homelessness and addiction, ensuring they have access to the comprehensive care they need to rebuild their lives” said Josh Morgan, Mayor of London. “I want to thank Premier Ford and the Minister of Health for recognizing the success of our existing hub system in London, seeing its potential, and committing to expand this model across Ontario. This investment will transform lives and strengthen communities throughout the province.”

Through Your Health: A Plan for Connected and Convenient Care and building on the Roadmap to Wellness, the province is taking action to connect individuals to integrated mental health and addictions services, where and when they need it.

Quick Facts

• The creation of HART Hubs is being done in partnership with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services, and the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.
• With a focus on treatment and recovery, HART Hubs will not offer so-called safer supply, supervised drug consumption or needle exchange programs.
• Through the Community Care and Recovery Act, 2024, the province has prohibited municipalities and local boards from applying to Health Canada for an exemption for the decriminalization of drugs. The Act also prohibits municipalities and local boards from applying to Health Canada for funding or entering into an agreement with Health Canada in respect to safer supply services or applying for an exemption or renewal of an exemption to operate a supervised consumption site, without prior provincial approval.
• Through the Roadmap to Wellness, Ontario is investing $3.8 billion over 10 years to fill gaps in mental health and addictions care, create new services and expand programs.
• Through the Roadmap to Wellness, the Addictions Recovery Fund and other initiatives, the government recently made the following investments:
  • $124 million over the next three years as part of Budget 2024 to sustain more than 380 addiction recovery beds and models of treatment like mobile mental health clinics.
  • $152 million over three years for supportive housing to assist individuals facing unstable housing conditions and experiencing mental health and addictions challenges.
  • More than $22 million over four years to create 10 new Youth Wellness Hubs that the government is adding to the network of 22 Hubs already opened since 2020, bringing the total number of Youth Wellness Hubs to 32 across the province.
  • More than $650 million in annual funding for the Homelessness Prevention Program and $41.5 million for the Indigenous Supportive House Program, which the government increased by $202 million annually in the 2023 provincial budget.
  • Up to $16 million to support Police-Partnered Mobile Crisis Response Teams in over 50 communities across the province so that health care professionals can attend crisis situations.
  • Over $60 million in annual funding to support Indigenous-led mental health, addictions and well-being supports that will help individuals, families and communities heal from the impacts of intergenerational trauma and colonization through culturally safe and responsive programs and services that are designed and delivered by and for Indigenous people.