Health Canada is seeking more data on substance use rates and treatment capacity as it considers British Columbia’s request to recriminalize open drug use in public places such as hospitals and playgrounds.
The B.C. Mental Health and Addictions Ministry responded to a Health Canada request “right away to provide further information” as Ottawa considers an exemption to the drug decriminalization pilot project in the province, Minister Jennifer Whiteside said in the B.C. legislature May 1.
“We’ve been working obviously very closely with our federal counterparts with respect to the changes that we requested [April 26],” Ms. Whiteside said. “It’s our expectation that they can respond expeditiously to that.”
BC United MLA Ellis Ross questioned the governing NDP’s pledge to work closely with Ottawa, saying the request from Health Canada proves the federal government is “in the dark.”
“What did Ottawa ask for? Will the premier table information today for everyone to see?” he said during question period.
Ms. Whiteside didn’t answer the question directly, saying instead that the province would “continue to work” with its federal counterparts and provincial partners to “do everything possible to keep British Columbians safe and connected to the health care that they need in the context of the toxic drug crisis.”
While Health Canada’s official request has not been publicly shared, Ms. Whiteside’s ministry said in a statement to the Globe and Mail that the requested information included “data on substance use and care as well as possible guidance to police.”
The Epoch Times contacted the B.C. Mental Health and Addictions Ministry and the Premier’s Office for details on Health Canada’s request for information, but did not receive a response by publication time.
Pilot Project
The decriminalization pilot project has been an attempt to respond to an opioid and street drug crisis that has led to more than 14,000 overdose deaths since the public-health emergency was first declared in April 2016.The province is one year into the three-year pilot project, which began in January 2023 when Health Canada issued an exemption to federal drug laws, decriminalizing possession of up to 2.5 grams of certain illegal drugs, including heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine.
B.C. Premier David Eby asked Health Canada last week to amend that exemption order to recriminalize the use of those drugs in public spaces such as hospitals, transit, and parks and give police the “tools” to stop public drug use.
Mr. Eby has been criticized for supporting the decriminalization project by provincial and federal conservative politicians alike.
Mr. Eby responded to opposition politicians’ claims that his decriminalization plan had failed, telling the B.C. Legislature May 1 that his government’s requested amendment to the policy would increase public safety.
“Our request to Ottawa exempts areas where people can … use their drugs under the supervision of medical professionals to make sure they don’t overdose, but also connect to care,” he said, adding that decriminalization would also still apply in people’s homes.
He said he expected Health Canada to act with “urgency” to implement the province’s policy amendments.
Ms. Saks recently has said it is too early to determine the effectiveness of decriminalization, but added Ottawa understands the urgency of B.C.’s policy change request. She said the government would work with the province to make any necessary changes.
No area of the province is immune to the ongoing toxic-drug crisis, the report said, adding that the areas hardest hit continue to be Vancouver, Surrey, and Nanaimo.
