More than 2,200 died of opioids in Ontario last year as numbers trend downward: data

Liam Casey · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Jun 05, 2025 8:14 AM EDT | Last Updated: June 5

More than 2,200 Ontarians died from opioids past year, a 15 per cent alteration from 2023, recently released information from the Office of the Chief Coroner shows.

"What goes done my caput is simply a tiny grade of optimism successful the information that we person seen little radical dice past year, which is precise good, but that's wrong a discourse of 2,231 radical dying past year," Dr. Dirk Huyer, the province's main coroner, told The Canadian Press successful an interview.

His bureau had recorded 2,639 opioid deaths successful 2023.

"I besides person a grade of interest that this is simply a abbreviated interval, for immoderate crushed that we haven't identified, and that the numbers could perchance get worse again," Huyer said.

The mortality complaint from opioid overdoses was 14.3 deaths per 100,000 radical successful 2024. That is down from the highest of 19.4 deaths per 100,000 radical astatine the tallness of the COVID-19 pandemic successful 2021, erstwhile opioids took the lives of 2,880 Ontarians.

Fentanyl and its related substances were recovered successful much than 83 per cent of opioid toxicity deaths, portion stimulants were recovered successful 69 per cent of deaths. Prescription benzodiazepines were seen successful 45 per cent of deaths past year, a crisp summation from 33 per cent the twelvemonth before. Non-prescription benzodiazepines were recovered successful 62 per cent of deaths, somewhat down from 66 per cent successful 2023.

The opioid situation began to deed Ontario successful 2015 and 2016 erstwhile illicit fentanyl made its mode eastbound from British Columbia. There were 728 opioid deaths successful 2015 and by 2018, that doubled to 1,565 deaths. The situation peaked successful the mediate of the pandemic.

Dr. Kieran Moore, Ontario's main aesculapian serviceman of health, declined a petition for an interrogation astir opioid deaths successful the province. The Canadian Press has asked him connected much than a twelve occasions since 2022 to sermon the opioid situation but helium has ne'er agreed to an interrogation connected the subject.

Health Minister Sylvia Jones did not respond to an interrogation request.

The Ministry of Health said the state is "making it easier for radical to interruption the tragic rhythm of addiction by expanding entree to harmless and broad intelligence wellness support."

"Through Ontario's roadworthy representation to wellness, the authorities is investing $3.8 cardinal implicit 10 years, and $124 cardinal done the addictions betterment fund, supporting 500 caller addiction betterment beds, much than 32 younker wellness hubs, implicit 100 mobile situation teams, and innovative models of attraction similar mobile clinics," the ministry said successful a statement.

Huyer lamented the information that the state does not precisely cognize what's down the alteration successful opioid deaths, but postulated that it could beryllium owed to a somewhat little toxic proviso of drugs.

"I privation we knew due to the fact that past I deliberation everybody would beryllium capable to reply the question connected wherever they should beryllium focusing and however to assistance supply the champion for everybody," helium said.

Shift successful attack to opioid crisis 

Other hallmarks of the Ontario opioid situation stay unchanged. Men relationship for 75 per cent of deaths, opioids disproportionally termination marginalized radical and 1 successful 5 opioid overdose deaths crossed the state occurs successful the stateless population.

The state has undergone a cardinal displacement successful its attack to the opioid crisis, which included banning supervised depletion sites it deemed excessively adjacent to schools and daycares. That authorities came astir aft a Toronto woman, Caroline Huebner-Makurat, was killed by a stray slug from a shooting extracurricular 1 of the sites.

One Toronto depletion tract challenged that instrumentality successful tribunal days earlier it came into effect connected April 1. A justice granted an injunction to let 10 specified sites to stay unfastened portion helium considers his decision. But 9 of the 10 sites had already agreed to modulation to the province's caller abstinence-based exemplary — homelessness and addiction betterment treatment, oregon HART, hubs — and closed.

The state is investing $550 cardinal to money a full of 28 HART hubs crossed Ontario, on with 540 new, highly supportive lodging units.

Liberal wellness professional Adil Shamji, who inactive works portion clip arsenic an exigency section doc and was connected the beforehand enactment of the COVID-19 pandemic, said he's disappointed successful the province's response.

"But there's nary level of disappointment that tin attack the level of heartbreak that families crossed Ontario are experiencing," helium said.

The caller homelessness and addiction attraction hubs besides miss the mark, helium said.

"They person nary caller services to connection and successful galore cases are underfunded, overwhelmed, and astatine a precise immature signifier wherever they're not capable to conscionable the demand," Shamji said.

He said there's a void of enactment connected the file.

"When you person the aesculapian information that touches connected truthful galore antithetic radical successful truthful galore antithetic walks of life, it speaks to the request for a nationalist wellness effect and for leaders to travel retired with ambition, boldness and with the seriousness that it deserves," helium said.

"And we're not seeing that from this government, from the curate of health, from nationalist wellness oregon the main aesculapian serviceman of health."

The Office of the Chief Coroner reported 197 opioid deaths crossed the state successful April, the astir caller information available, but stressed that fig is preliminary and volition emergence since decease investigations and toxicology results often taken months to complete.