Close X
Thursday, November 14, 2024
ADVT 
National

Greens vow to expand safer supply of drugs in B.C., ex-coroner Lapointe backs plan

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 24 Sep, 2024 03:09 PM
  • Greens vow to expand safer supply of drugs in B.C., ex-coroner Lapointe backs plan

British Columbia's former chief coroner is criticizing plans by two of the province's major political parties for involuntary treatment of people with drug addictions, saying there's little evidence it works and more people will die.

Lisa Lapointe emerged from retirement in the starting days of the B.C. election campaign to throw her weight behind a BC Green Party campaign pledge to expand prescribed safer supply of opioids and other drugs to deal with the province's deadly overdose crisis.

Political leaders fanned out their campaigns across the province Tuesday, with NDP Leader David Eby in Terrace in the province's northwest, while B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad went to the southeast, in Kimberley, where he criticized the Greens' drug plan, calling decriminalization and safe supply "nonsense."

Rustad also confirmed that he regrets getting vaccinated for COVID-19, a day after a video surfaced of him telling a group of former public servants who believe they were discriminated against that he regretted getting the "so-called" vaccine. 

Rustad told reporters Tuesday that after getting his second vaccine he had heart problems and when he went to get his third shot "the question they had for me was only one word, 'Moderna?' And to me, that tells me that there has been some issues, and so, from that perspective, I do regret getting the COVID vaccines."

Both the governing New Democrats and the B.C. Conservatives have campaigned on promises to bring in a form of involuntary treatment, if elected, but Lapointe said at a news conference in Victoria with Green Leader Sonia Furstenau, that there's little evidence to support the idea.

"We need to be very careful before we jump off this involuntary care cliff as the answer to this very complex public health emergency. We know people die after treatment. We know that involuntary care has very little evidence to support its effectiveness. What would really help people is having access to the care they need much further upstream," she said.

Lapointe said people can't access family doctors or mental health supports and are stuck on long waiting lists for any sort of treatment they want to attend.

"If people can't access the voluntary care that they're trying to access, how can we then incarcerate them involuntarily when there's no evidence that that would be successful?" she said.

"We are just setting ourselves up for a disaster, and more and more and more people will suffer the effects of substance use disorder, and more people will die, more families will be harmed."

Figures from the BC Coroners Service say more than 15,000 people have died in the province from overdoses since a public health emergency was declared in April 2016. 

A report on care options for people with severe addictions released by the NDP government as it announced its plans for involuntary care earlier this month says "there is insufficient high-quality evidence regarding the effectiveness of involuntary care" for people with substance use disorder. 

Furstenau said other party leaders have indulged in unacceptable "dehumanizing rhetoric" against drug users.

She said a broader system of prescribed safer supply of drugs, including fentanyl, is needed, as well as a "demedicalized model" to reduce stigma and barriers in the current system.

She said a Green government would regulate treatment and recovery programs and gather data to track outcomes and availability.

"We have hundreds of millions of public dollars going to treatment and recovery programs that are not required to provide data. They're not required to provide evidence that their programs work," she said.

"So, with urgency, we need the province to take on the responsibility of regulating treatment and addictions programs."

The Greens are also promising drug education in schools and enhanced mental health support. 

Lapointe retired earlier this year after 13 years on the job and in the midst of the toxic drug crisis.

Before her retirement, Lapointe lamented that the emergency never received a "a co-ordinated response commensurate with the size of (the) crisis."

In her final months as chief coroner, a review panel recommended providing controlled drugs without prescriptions but the idea was almost immediately rejected by the provincial government.

Elsewhere on the campaign trail, NDP Leader David Eby is in Terrace in B.C.'s northwest looking to win back the Skeena riding that is being vacated by Ellis Ross, who held the seat for BC United, but will now run in the federal election for the Conservatives. 

The NDP announced it had nominated candidates in all 93 ridings for the Oct. 19 election. The party says the slate is 60 per cent women.

In Kimberley, Rustad released his party's campaign pledges for the mining industry, promising to simplify permitting, cut redundant regulations, invest in rural infrastructure, and foster strong Indigenous partnerships.

All three leaders are scheduled to debate each other two days before advance polling opens.

A consortium of broadcasters announced the Oct. 8 debate will air from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on all major television and radio news networks and be moderated by Angus Reid Institute president Shachi Kurl.

MORE National ARTICLES

B.C. Premier touts involuntary care plans at convention, days before campaign begins

B.C. Premier touts involuntary care plans at convention, days before campaign begins
B.C. Premier David Eby says several city governments are on board with having a "secure site" to house and treat severely mentally ill and drug addicted people.  Eby told local politicians at the Union of B.C. Municipalities conference in Vancouver that public safety is a priority for cities, especially in downtown cores, where many people are seen "visibly" struggling with addictions. 

B.C. Premier touts involuntary care plans at convention, days before campaign begins

Climate, food security, Arctic among Canada's intelligence priorities, Ottawa says

Climate, food security, Arctic among Canada's intelligence priorities, Ottawa says
The pressing issues of climate change and food security join more familiar ones like violent extremism and espionage on a new list of Canada's intelligence priorities. The federal government says publishing the list of priorities for the first time is an important step toward greater transparency.

Climate, food security, Arctic among Canada's intelligence priorities, Ottawa says

B.C. and First Nations reach deal to sell 2,600 condos at 60% of market value

B.C. and First Nations reach deal to sell 2,600 condos at 60% of market value
An agreement between First Nations and the British Columbia government will see thousands of homes made available in Vancouver at 40-per-cent below cost. Premier David Eby calls it a "remarkable" accomplishment between the province and the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations, which would see about 2,600 homes sold for 60 per cent of the value in one of the most expensive real estate markets in the world. 

B.C. and First Nations reach deal to sell 2,600 condos at 60% of market value

NDP flips, BC United flops, B.C. Conservatives surge as election campaign approaches

NDP flips, BC United flops, B.C. Conservatives surge as election campaign approaches
If the lead up to British Columbia's provincial election campaign is any indication of what’s to come, voters should expect the unexpected.  It could be a wild ride to voting day on Oct. 19.

NDP flips, BC United flops, B.C. Conservatives surge as election campaign approaches

Canada makes small emissions cut in 2023, but must ramp up to hit key targets: report

Canada makes small emissions cut in 2023, but must ramp up to hit key targets: report
Hikes to oil production and rebounding air travel put a drag on Canada's climate progress last year, a report published Thursday by a leading policy institute found, though the country was still able to make a modest cut to its planet-warming emissions. The new estimates from the Canadian Climate Institute show Canada cut emissions by about 0.8 cent last year compared to 2022, or eight per cent since 2005. 

Canada makes small emissions cut in 2023, but must ramp up to hit key targets: report

Bad guys 'always a step ahead' on foreign interference in Canada: Green official

Bad guys 'always a step ahead' on foreign interference in Canada: Green official
A senior Green Party official says "the bad guys are always a step ahead" when it comes to meddling in the Canadian political process. Jon Irwin, the party's interim executive director, told a federal inquiry today the ideal tactic for a foreign country would be working to get someone in a "position of power" within a Canadian political party.

Bad guys 'always a step ahead' on foreign interference in Canada: Green official