Another grim milestone for overdose deaths in British Columbia in the month of June.
The BC Coroners Service says there were another 175 people who died, four more than the previous record of 171 set in May.
Since March, overdoses have killed three-times as many people in B.C. as COVID-19, which as of Thursday afternoon has killed 189 people in the province.
“It’s frustrating and sad to report 175 lives lost. And we obviously have seen a trend co-related with the duel health emergencies, will the illicit drug toxicity crisis that’s been in effect really since the end of 2015, and declared a public health emergency here in B.C. in 2016, but also with the impacts of COVID-19,”Coroners spokesperson Andy Watson told NL News.
“We would continue to urge for this crisis to be treated with the same attention and interest as the COVID-19 pandemic. Certainly both are very important for public health. We’ll continue to look for opportunities to see what we can do to create access to safer supply.”
Three of those deaths in June were in Kamloops bringing the city’s total to 25 deaths, which is one fewer than all of 2019 with six months of the year still to go. In the Thompson-Cariboo, there have been 44 overdose deaths in 2020, three more than the 41 recorded last year.
Provincewide, there have been 728 overdose deaths this year, after 981 in all of 2019, about half the record of 1,546 deaths set in 2018, with six months to go.
Chief Coroner Lisa Lapointe is urging substance users to not use drugs alone – to have some present or head to an overdose prevention or supervised consumption site where the drugs can be checked for toxicity.
She says while opioids, along with cocaine and the stimulants methamphetamine and amphetamine, have been detected among those who have fatally overdosed, fentanyl remains the most significant driver in the high number of deaths in the province.
Speaking during her COVID-19 case update, B.C.’s top doctor once again called on the federal government to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of illicit drugs meant for personal use.
Henry adds the overdose crisis is complex, noting its vital that the stigma be reduced around people who use drugs alone at home, similar to a call made by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.
