The MPP for Windsor West is calling on the province to come through for the Safepoint Consumption and Treatment Services site.
On Wednesday, Lisa Gretzky sent a letter to Health Minister Sylvia Jones about the need for the urgent funding to open and operate the CTS in Windsor without delay.
Earlier this week, Windsor city council voted in favour of re-affirming their support for the CTS site and previous compromise agreement from earlier in February.
Gretzky says delays in accessing care could have deadly consequences given the severity of the impact of the opioid crisis locally.
"And so now that we're seeing some discussion coming out of council around the funding and concerns around funding, as we're seeing some progress being made towards opening Safepoint, I felt that it was important to bring again to the Minister's attention how important it is to get the funding," she continued. "To get that commitment and to get that funding flowing."
She says having sustainability for Safepoint once it opens its doors is important, and that the financial burden is a provincial obligation not something that should fall on the municipality or the Health Unit.
"We don't want to be in a position where the municipality is looking for funding for it, or the Health Unit figuring out how they're going to use municipal funds to fund it, or the community having to fundraise to have Safepoint open. We need the commitment from the provincial government to ensure that the stable funding is there, that it's consistent, and it's funding that can be counted on," she said.
Gretzky says she, along with many others in the community, have been personally touched by losing someone important to an opioid overdose.
According to data from the Health Unit, 86 people in Windsor-Essex died from opioid overdoses in 2021.
Gretzky adds that these losses are things that tear families apart, and isn't something people get over easily.
"The reality is, if we want to be able to give people an opportunity to detox and get off the addiction to drugs, and we want to truly support people in our community, support families in our community then what we need to be doing is more forward thinking like the Health Unit has been doing when it comes to Safepoint."
The Windsor Essex County Health Unit anticipates receiving federal approval for the site sometime this month, and provincial approval and funding is expected sometime this summer.
- with files from AM800's Meagan Delaurier
Lisa Gretzky's letter to Health Minister Sylvia Jones