TOXIC DRUG SUPPLY TAKES TOLL

B.C. coroner releases grim stats

Overdose deaths nearly doubled last month during the COVID-19 pandemic, compared to the same month a year earlier.

According to the latest figures from the B.C. Coroners Service a total of 153 individuals died due to a drug overdose in November 2020, a seven per cent decrease from the month before and an 89 per cent increase from November 2019.

Those latest figures are the equivalent of about five deaths a day.

“Tragically, as we reach the end of 2020, our province is facing a record-breaking year for lives lost due to a toxic illicit drug supply,” said chief coroner Lisa Lapointe, referencing the pandemic-induced border closures that have limited drug supply and forced drug users toward more toxic resources.

“In the five years of this public health emergency, more than 6,500 families have experienced the grief and sadness of losing a loved one to the challenging medical condition of drug addiction. I extend my sincere condolences to all of those grieving a family member, friend or colleague due to this disease.”

To date, some 1,548 people have died due to drug use this year in B.C., with many health authorities recording the highest or close to highest ever monthly totals.

The majority (70 per cent) of those dying of overdoses are aged 30 to 59, while 81 per cent of deaths are men.

More than 80 per cent of overdose deaths in 2020 have been linked to fentanyl or similar compounds, while cocaine and methamphetamine are the next most common substances.

Just over half of all overdose deaths this year — a time in which physical distancing and household bubbles became the norm — took place in private homes.

“The impacts of COVID-19 have been deadly for those experiencing problematic substance use,” Lapointe said.

“Ensuring access to critical harm reduction measures including naloxone, supervised consumption sites, overdose prevention sites and drug checking services are essential if we want to prevent future deaths.”

Last month, Vancouver city council unanimously approved a motion that asks the federal government to decriminalize simple possession of illicit drugs.

If approved, it would make Vancouver the first jurisdiction in Canada to decriminalize drug possession.

The move complements other efforts to expand harm-reduction and treatment services, as well as B.C.'s safe supply program, which was launched in March, when the pandemic border closure began limiting the usual sources of illicit drugs.

Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Sheila Malcolmson acknowledged the impacts of a “double tragedy” in B.C.

“Before the pandemic, my predecessor, Judy Darcy, along with our front-line partners, did hard work to start building a system that brought overdose deaths down for the first time since 2012,” she said in a statement shared Monday.

“COVID-19 has set us back with a dramatic spike in drug toxicity. I am committed to building on our unrelenting response to the overdose crisis.”