More than eight years have passed since the B.C. government declared the overdose crisis a public health emergency. In that time, the situation has worsened significantly, culminating in 2023 with British Columbia recording its most overdose deaths ever in a single year.
The BC Coroner Service reported 2,511 lives were lost to drugs last year, a distressing five percent increase from the previous record of 2,383 deaths in 2022. That’s seven people dying each day. The Interior Health region alone witnessed at least 417 deaths, including 13 in Cariboo-Chilcotin.
In January 2023, the government decriminalized hard drugs such as crack cocaine, meth, and fentanyl. One year later it’s clear that this experiment has failed, the results are in our streets.
Just last week top B.C. police commanders testified in Ottawa that they were largely powerless to address open drug use such as people smoking meth beside a family with young children at the beach.
For months B.C. mayors have been warning the government about the surge in open drug use plaguing their downtown cores.
Now, we have nurses speaking out about the dangerous work conditions driven by open drug use in hospitals. In fact, since the beginning of decriminalization, 36 healthcare workers have officially filed WorkSafe BC time-loss claims that were accepted for exposure to substances in the workplace. Of these 36 workers, 14 were nurses.
Every week I hear from constituents concerned with the province’s handling of the toxic drug crisis. Families are desperate for increased treatment and recovery support for loved ones struggling with the persistent challenges of addiction. They have nowhere to turn.
Continuing down the same path is not going to bring better results.
BC United has introduced our “Better is Possible” plan, a comprehensive strategy that prioritizes accessible, free treatment and recovery services instead of simply providing free drugs to those battling addiction.
This plan is focused on making addiction treatment affordable and accessible by abolishing user fees at publicly-funded addiction treatment beds and providing direct government funding for private treatment beds. A crucial component of our approach is enhancing awareness and prevention. We are committed to launching public education campaigns specifically tailored for young people, and establishing workplace programs designed to help employees recognize substance use disorders and support employees who are in recovery.
It’s time to end this decriminalization experiment and focus on recovery and treatment.