The Alberta government has introduced legislation this week that seeks to compel people with serious substance addictions to undergo involuntary treatment.
Bill 53, also known as the Compassionate Intervention Act, was presented in the provincial legislature on April 15. The first of its kind in the country, the act would allow relatives, guardians, health-care professionals, or police officers to request an addiction treatment order for people who are “likely to cause harm to themselves or others as a result of their addiction or substance use.”
The legislation was part of Premier Danielle Smith’s 2023 election campaign to address the province’s addiction crisis, and builds on previous commitments, including funding for addiction recovery in Budget 2025, the construction of recovery facilities in Alberta’s two largest cities, and the creation of a dedicated youth addiction recovery centre.
Mental Health and Addictions Minister Dan Williams said Albertans shouldn’t have to choose between “compassionate intervention and having safe communities.”
“There is nothing caring and nothing compassionate, there’s nothing Canadian about leaving our loved ones to be stripped of their dignity and, given enough time, stripped of their life to this deadly disease of addiction,” Williams said when introducing the bill in the legislature.
“We must intervene, and a compassionate intervention is one that removes the loved ones from the grips of addiction and brings them into healing, into health,” he added. “This is not a criminal justice response; it is a health-care response to a health-care crisis, a public addiction crisis.”
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The province described involuntary intervention as “just one tool” to help people pursue recovery, noting that individuals would need to meet specific criteria to qualify.
The process would begin with a lawyer from an independent commission reviewing applications for involuntary treatment and determining whether the patient meets the criteria for a 72-hour assessment period. If the criteria are met, the lawyer would issue both an apprehension order and an assessment order.
Police would locate and transport the patient to an involuntary intervention centre to be evaluated for addiction-related risk factors. A three-person commission panel would then review the patient’s medical assessment and other information, such as police records, and decide whether the patient is eligible for a care plan, which could be renewed if the patient continues to meet the criteria.
After completing the treatment, the patient would be given a discharge plan with ongoing support and services, according to the program.
The province has previously said the legislation will include safeguards to protect patients’ “individual rights and freedoms,” including access to legal support and the ability to appeal.
Critics of recovery-based approaches to addiction have argued that involuntary treatment infringes on human rights.
“This legislation violates the fundamental rights of individuals, undermining personal autonomy and the right to make decisions about one’s own body and healthcare,” said the Canadian Civil Liberties Association in an April 15 press release, responding to Alberta’s bill.
“Involuntary treatment can cause harm, including increased relapse and overdose rates. Coercing individuals into treatment without their consent, based on subjective assessments, is a dangerous step that risks abuse and further stigmatization of vulnerable people.”
NDP Opposition critic for mental health and addiction Janet Eremenko also criticized the move, arguing that the introduction of involuntary treatment comes at a time when people seeking voluntary recovery face limited access to services.
“Recovery is possible, but it is a process. We support long-term recovery. It’s an essential tool for people on the journey toward a better life,” she said at the legislature. “Without housing, without wraparound supports, and without options for those who are seeking treatment today, a forced intervention model is simply not the path forward, and the evidence bears that out.”
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The province allocated $1.7 billion in Budget 2025’s addiction and mental health portfolio, saying the investment will help increase access to recovery and mental health services, as well as support the implementation of the Compassionate Intervention Act.
Smith said the involuntary intervention legislation will help “keep our communities safe while ensuring our most vulnerable can access much needed recovery supports.”
“For those suffering from addiction there are two paths–they can let their addiction destroy and take their life or they can enter recovery,” she said in an April 15 press release. “There is no compassion in leaving people to suffer in the throes of addiction and in Alberta we choose recovery.”
The province announced plans earlier this year to build two addiction recovery facilities: one in Calgary and one in Edmonton, each with 150 beds. Budget 2025 allocated $180 million over three years for their construction, which is set to begin next year.
The province is also exploring options to create temporary adult spaces for involuntary intervention in existing facilities next year, officials said.
The newly introduced bill would also replace and update the Protection of Children Abusing Drugs Act (PChAD), which allows parents or guardians to request that a minor who abuses drugs or alcohol be placed in mandatory detoxification for up to 15 days.
This change would allow for “longer-term treatment, an easier application process and increased family involvement in a child’s recovery,” the April 15 press release says.
The province last year announced the creation of the Northern Alberta Youth Recovery Centre in Edmonton, which will increase addiction treatment beds for youth from 70 to 175. The $23 million facility, set to open next year, will also include space for care under the Compassionate Intervention Act, officials said.
