An interim safe-injection site begins operating today in Toronto.
Health Canada approved Toronto Public Health's application to open its downtown site several months sooner than expected.
It says supervised areas save lives and improve health without increasing drug use or crime nearby.
Three permanent safe injection sites were set to open in the city this fall, but harm reduction experts say those plans were made years ago, before the opioid crisis was as severe as it is now.
Last week, harm reduction workers began setting up an unsanctioned safe injection site in Toronto's Moss Park, saying the space is needed as the city grapples with a string of overdoses and suspected overdose deaths.
There are safe injection sites currently running in Vancouver, Surrey, Kelowna, Kamloops, and Montreal with clinics under review in many other Canadian cities, including Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton.