Sask. delays involuntary addiction treatment rollout to 2027

The legislation underpinning Saskatchewan’s involuntary treatment program may have passed in spring of 2026, but it’s not expected to be up and running for several months yet.

At the end of the spring sitting, Mental Health and Addictions Minister Lori Carr said she hoped the program would be up and running later in 2026.

However, speaking on Thursday, she said it now likely wouldn’t be until early 2027.

“It’s a little bit later than I would have liked, but we really want to ensure that when the committee is set up and when the regulations come out, that we’re best poised to make sure that we have success out of the gate,” she explained.

Carr said there was still work being done to develop the regulations for what the government is calling compassionate intervention, and the committee which will decide whether someone is put into treatment is still being formed.

She said they’re working with the ministries and First Nations partners to find legal and medical professionals as well as members of the public.

“Most importantly, Indigenous representation within that, because whoever you’re sitting across from, it needs to be representative of who’s sitting across from you,” said Carr.

The first treatment facility will be hosted within the Saskatchewan Hospital North Battleford, the secure psychiatric hospital.

In May, Carr said the assessment centre was already in place in North Battleford.

Carr said there is some availability at the Saskatchewan Hospital and it’s already a secure facility. She said some renovations are needed to make it a bit more “homey” for patients.

Both the Sask. NDP and independent MLA Betty Nippi-Albright were against the legislation when it passed — Nippi-Albright was against the very idea of forced addiction treatment itself.