The Manitoba government is investing $8.7 million in 1,648 publicly funded addictions treatment spaces to give all Manitobans the opportunity to recover and build better lives, Mental Health and Community Wellness Minister Janice Morley-Lecomte announced Thursday, June 22.
In a media release, the minister said, “We recognize the importance of increasing life-saving addictions treatment capacity across the province to ensure these services are available for Manitobans where and when they need them. As part of our commitment to support 1,000 provincially funded treatment spaces, we are supporting Manitobans at each step of their recovery journeys. We have fulfilled and, in fact, significantly surpassed this commitment.”
Building on previous announcements of new publicly funded treatment spaces in rural and northern Manitoba, the Manitoba government is investing an additional $2.9 million in 513 publicly funded spaces in Winnipeg to fulfil this commitment.
The total of 1,648 spaces, supported by the historic overall $8.7-million investment, will increase access to high-quality, evidence-based services and care closer to home for individuals throughout the province, the minister said, adding that these publicly funded spaces will give all Manitobans, regardless of their financial situations, the opportunity to recover and build better lives.
“These new investments are essential in building a co-ordinated, integrated access to evidence-based addictions and mental health care in our province,” said Dr. Jitender Sareen, provincial specialty lead for mental health and addictions, Shared Health. “These initiatives are guided by Manitoba’s Clinical and Preventive Services Plan and the VIRGO Report.”
Following a public expression of interest process, the Manitoba government is partnering with service delivery, community and Indigenous organizations to offer additional withdrawal management services, bed-based treatment, intensive day programming and supportive recovery housing.
“In two years of operation, Bruce Oake Recovery Centre has graduated 184 men through our 16-week live-in program,” said Scott Oake, founder and president, Bruce Oake Memorial Foundation. “This sustained provincial funding ensures we can continue to help men get their lives back as they return to their families, loved ones, jobs and society in general.”
The investments align with priorities identified in A Pathway to Mental Health and Community Wellness: A Roadmap for Manitoba , the Manitoba government’s five-year strategy for improving wellness, mental health, substance use and addictions services and programs.
“This ongoing government funding is a game-changer in Manitoba,” said Shane Sturby-Highfield, a Winnipeg resident who has undergone addictions treatment. “It gives hope that help is available and that recovery is possible, even for me. The fact that this money makes support available for the sustainable future is going to change the recovery landscape in this province.”
To read A Pathway to Mental Health and Community Wellness: A Roadmap for Manitoba , visit https://gov.mb.ca/mh/roadmap.html
