‘Old approach isn’t working’: Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown pushes for involuntary treatment for severe addiction

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown is calling on the province to allow involuntary treatment for residents of Peel with severe addictions, brain injuries and mental illness.

“By prioritizing timely interventions we can reduce harm, promote recovery and foster a healthier, more resilient community where everyone has an opportunity to rebuild their lives with dignity,” Brown said at a news conference on Thursday.

“The same old approach isn’t working. I don’t want to hear about hundreds more overdose fatalities,” he added.

Brown is calling on the province to green light a pilot project that a City of Brampton release said would offer a “compassionate and necessary solution” to burgeoning addiction and mental health issues.

“The City urges the provincial government to introduce compassionate intervention programs for individuals unable to seek care due to the severity of their conditions, connecting them with the essential services they require,” the City’s release reads.

The release says the program would empower first responders to place a person in a psychiatric facility “if a doctor deems it necessary for their health and safety, as well as the safety of others.”

“This approach ensures individuals with severe mental health, addictions and acquired brain injuries are connected to the care and services they desperately need while balancing dignity and community safety.”

In order for involuntary treatment to be approved, the province’s Mental Health Act would have to be changed.

CityNews has reached out to the Canadian Civil Liberties Association and is awaiting a response on Brampton’s request.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, meanwhile, has ordered the closure of supervised drug consumption sites that are near schools and daycares, and lashed out at the federal government recently for its controversial safer supply program.

In August, Ford called the federal government “the biggest drug dealer in the entire country.”

Ford has touted treatment as a better option and his government has committed $387 million to open 19 new Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) Hubs.

The Toronto Board of Health denounced the province’s plans to close five supervised consumption sites across the city, saying it will lead to more drug deaths and public drug use while putting a greater strain on emergency services as they race to more overdose calls.