2023-04-18 20:43:18
On Tuesday, the province’s coroners’ office revised the number of overdose-related deaths in 2022.
In all, 2,314 people lost their lives last year, a number never before recorded.
Overdose-related deaths are the leading cause of unnatural deaths in the province, ahead of homicides, suicides, motor vehicle accidents, drownings and fire-related deaths.
It’s a crisis beyond comprehension
says British Columbia Chief Coroner Lisa Lapointe, adding that the current state of health emergency is the longest ever in the province’s history.
The coroner wants a safe drug supply for those most at risk of overdosing. According to her, one should not oppose safe supply and addiction treatment options.
Possession of small amounts of hard drugs has not been considered a criminal offense in British Columbia since the end of January, but the issue of the toxicity of drugs on the market is still relevant.
I remain committed to doing everything in my power to end this crisis and the state of health emergency.
said for her part the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, Jennifer Whiteside, before recalling the historic investment of $1 billion in the last provincial budget. These funds are to be used, among other things, to improve mental health and addictions services and treatment.
The crisis affects the whole province
Unfortunately, the data for the start of 2023 points to another banner year.
Between January and March, as the Coroners’ Office reports, 596 lives were claimed by an overdose. This balance sheet is the second worst on record for this period. For the same period in 2022, the service had reported 599 deaths.
Most of the victims, aged between 30 and 59, are men.
The coroner recalls that the crisis affects the entire province. Greater Vancouver and Greater Victoria have the highest death tolls. Northern British Columbia has the highest rate of overdose-related deaths in the province.
1681992951
#Overdose #crisis #comprehension #coroner