Toronto Public Health (TPH) released a report citing drug toxicity as the leading cause of death among the city’s unhoused population for the first half of 2023.
Between January and June of this year TPH received 79 reports of deaths among the unhoused population, according to data released by the city on Thursday.
The number is lower than the 92 deaths reported in the same time frame last year, but it is still higher than pre-pandemic levels.
Data shows that 46 per cent of the deaths reported among unhoused people thus far in 2023 are a result of drug overdoses.
A vast majority of toxicity-related deaths originate from a dangerous unregulated drug supply as well as “the use of highly potent opioids combined with unexpected substances” which are significantly increasing the risk of overdose in Toronto, the report said.
Other leading causes of death among those experiencing homelessness in 2023 are cancer, accidents and suicide, while the cause of death is either unknown or to be determined in 38 per cent of reported cases.
People experiencing homelessness are also more likely to die prematurely. In 2021, the median age of death for the general population in Toronto was 78 for males and 85 for females.
In comparison, for the first half of 2023, the median age of death for people experiencing homelessness was 52 for males and 48 for females, according to the report.
Information on the deaths of Toronto’s unhoused population is updated twice a year, and accounts for deaths in Toronto’s shelter system as well as deaths outside of shelters.
