British Columbians ‘Continue to Suffer’ as 2022 Will Have Highest Number of Illicit Drug Deaths Ever
A coroner’s report released on Monday said 171 people died from poisoning in BC in September.
The BC Coroners Service’s monthly report estimated that 5.7 people died from toxic drugs each day in September. We also noted an increase in the proportion of deaths among those aged 19–39 and those aged 60 and over.
“Not all public health emergencies are treated the same,” said harm reduction advocate Guy Felicera in a tweet. “It’s heartbreaking over and over again.”
So far this year, 401 people have died from poisoning in Vancouver, including 50 deaths in September. The city’s illegal drug death rate is 73.2 deaths per 100,000, well above the state average of 41.6.
The number of deaths was about the same as in August 2022 (169), but 8% higher than in September 2021. .
1,644 deaths have been reported by the end of September 2022, the highest number recorded in the first nine months of the calendar year. It is his 24th consecutive month that more than 150 lives have been lost due to unregulated supplies of toxic substances.
Last year, 2,267 people died from poisoning.
“People in British Columbia continue to suffer the tragic effects of a toxic and precarious drug supply,” Chief Coroner Lisa Lapointe said in a statement.
“Both occasional drug users and substance addicts are at risk of sudden death from unpredictable illegal markets.”
Illicit fentanyl is the leading cause of deaths. It will be found in about 81% of drug poisoning deaths in 2022, a slight drop from 86% in 2021. But extreme fentanyl concentrations are also up slightly, with him increasing from 13% to 16% in 2020 and most of 2021. Percentage of cases since November 2021.
Benzodiazepines, present in 52% of drug samples in January 2022, have dropped to 22% as of August. The report also notes that etizolam was detected in 38% of toxicology reports from July 2020 to August 2022. Etizolam is a non-responsive benzo to naloxone, which can be fatal in combination with opioids.
Last week, the State Legislature’s Special Standing Committee on Health released its first report on the drug toxicity crisis. It made various recommendations, but the lack of a clear timeline and systemic changes worried its advocates.
In an open letter published in The Mainlander, dozens of signatories described the report as “another disappointment” that “covers up the problem of the toxic drug supply and recommends nothing but the status quo”. It is criticized as
It has been 2,398 days since former State Health Officer Dr. Perry Kendall announced a public health crisis on April 14, 2016. That year, 994 people died from suspected drug toxicity.
More than 10,505 people have died from poisoning since the public health emergency was declared.
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British Columbians ‘Continue to Suffer’ as 2022 Will Have Highest Number of Illicit Drug Deaths Ever
Source link British Columbians ‘Continue to Suffer’ as 2022 Will Have Highest Number of Illicit Drug Deaths Ever
