Three mental health and addictions organizations are urging caution as the Ontario government moves forward with its plans to expand beer and wine sales to convenience stores and all grocery across the province.
Children’s Mental Health Ontario, Addictions Mental Health Ontario, and Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario released a joint statement on Thursday, following the province’s announcement of sweeping new changes that will make alcoholic beverages available for purchase at up to 8,500 new locations. The Ford government also said it will be ending the restrictions on 12 and 24-case sales.
The three mental health organizations said increasing access to alcohol will contribute to an increase in public health harms.
“Alcohol is a leading cause of preventable deaths, injuries, violence and illnesses,” the organizations said in a statement. “According to Public Health Ontario, there are more than 4,000 deaths, 22,000 hospitalizations and close to 195,000 emergency department visits due to alcohol in the province every year.”
As part of the expansion plan, the government has committed $10 million over five years to social responsibility and public health measures. The province has also pledged to consult with public health organizations on the issue.
While acknowledging that the government’s consideration of public health measures in its expansion announcement is important, the groups pointed out that increasing the number of alcohol outlets has been shown to increase negative health outcomes including violence, injuries, alcohol-related crashes, and death by suicide.
“Despite this growing evidence, the government of Ontario has already significantly increased access to alcohol, through increases in locations of availability, extended hours, and changes to rules for restaurants and bars,” the statement said.
According to the statistics provided in the statement, the healthcare costs associated with alcohol in Ontario have increased 35 per cent between 2010-2020 from $1.73 billion to $2.3 billion.
Alcohol cost the province $7.11 billion in 2020 due to lost productivity, healthcare, criminal justice and other direct costs, the organizations said.
“The community mental health and addictions sector looks forward to collaborating with the government on the implementation and development of a comprehensive alcohol strategy, to ensure that the approach prioritizes public health and harm reduction and minimizes the negative impact to those most at risk.”
The changes government’s changes to alcohol sales in Ontario are expected to come into effect no later than January 1, 2026.