There are growing calls from the Drug Strategy Network of Ontario and its partners for municipalities to take action regarding the opioid crisis.

Adrienne Crowder, manager of Wellington-Guelph Drug Strategy, says while many think the issue is a federal problem, municipalities are the ones who experience the damaging effects.

“Most people think of substance policy and drug policy being done federally… and provincially... The challenge is that who actually wears the problem of the costs, and the harms is the municipalities.”

Crowder points to one of three fact sheets released last month by the Drug Strategy Network of Ontario that aims to get municipalities more involved.

“The third one really tries to give municipalities some specific actions that they can take at a municipal level, so that they don’t have to wait for the provincial or federal government to make changes for them to be able to start to be part of the solution… It lists out a bunch of things: some that are being done already in other municipalities and some that are the tools that municipalities have in their hands that they could use.”

According to the document, the data suggests advocating for drug and health policy changes by working with municipal counterparts. It also proposes connecting municipalities with local governing bodies to fight the issue within the community.

The other fact sheets focus on challenges users face with an unregulated drug market, and the costs and harms of the status quo of the crisis.

Crowder hopes the next step is starting the conversation at micro and macro levels by encouraging a mindset shift that focuses on addressing the crisis as manageable.

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