First Nations To Get Overdose Fight Funds

The B.C. government has announced $20 million in funding over three years for Indigenous communities struggling with overdoses. Judy Darcy, minister for mental health and addictions, said the money is targeted to help First Nations because their members are five times more likely to overdose than the rest of the population. Darcy says the funding will be administered by the B.C. First Nations Health Authority to support existing culturally appropriate services and to develop new communityled programs. The health authority’s acting chief medical officer, Dr. Shannon McDonald, says 55 projects have been approved to provide a range of supports including expanded access to the overdose-reversing drug naloxone, more treatment options for people struggling with addiction in remote communities and “back-to-the-land” therapy camps. She says many of the addiction issues among Indigenous people on and off reserves are rooted in pain and trauma, and diverse solutions are needed to help those who use illicit drugs in their preteens and into their 70s. Data released by the First Nations Health Authority last August showed Indigenous people are three times more likely to die of an overdose compared with others in B.C.