To Combat Drug Overdose, Canadian Province Of British Columbia Is Decriminalising Heroin, Meth, Ecstasy & Crack Cocaine
As part of an effort to combat the drug overdose crisis, the western Canadian province of British Columbia launched a three-year trial programme on Tuesday to stop punishing people for carrying small amounts of heroin, meth, ecstasy, or crack cocaine.?
Canadian province of British Columbia is decriminalising drugs as a trial?
According to government figures, British Columbia is responsible for around one-third of the 32,000 deaths caused by overdose and drug trafficking in Canada since 2016.
That year, the province proclaimed drug overdose a public health emergency.The COVID-19 epidemic exacerbated the problem by disrupting illicit drug supply lines as well as support services, leaving people with more dangerous drugs than they could handle on their own.?
According to preliminary data given by the province on Tuesday, there were 2,272 suspected illegal drug poisoning deaths in 2022, the second highest annual total ever recorded, trailing only 2021 by 34 deaths.?
The Trudeau administration said in May that it would allow British Columbia to decriminalise marijuana, a first-of-its-kind exception in Canada. The British Columbia government intends to address the issue as a health issue rather than a criminal one by not prosecuting people who carry small amounts of drugs.? ?
The provision wants to lessen?the stigma associated with substance use?
According to the province, the exemption is meant to lessen the stigma associated with substance use and make it simpler for people to seek help from authorities.?
University of Toronto professor Robert Schwartz said the proposal was admirable as a first step, but that more needed to be done to address the drug problem."The issue with these substances is that there is a massive, clandestine supply that is causing significant harm," Schwartz explained. He added, "to truly address this, we require a comprehensive public health approach. This decriminalisation is only the first step."?
The narcotics on the exemption list, which include fentanyl and other opioids, remain illegal, and the exemption from arrest only applies to personal possession of up to 2.5 grams.??
"For many years, we have had a de facto policy not to arrest people for personal drug possession," a Vancouver Police Department official stated, but this move will result in fewer seizures of modest amounts of drugs.?
Other Canadian communities are keeping a close eye on the pilot. They are also seeing an increase in drug overdose deaths.Many health professionals believe that decriminalising drugs would encourage people to use them in places where they could get medical help.
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