Expert Panel Warns People Will ‘Die At Unprecedented Rates’ Unless BC Government Changes Approach on Drug Policies

published on November 3, 2023 by Rumneek Johal in PressProgress

An expert death review panel in British Columbia says the provincial government needs to do more to stop overdose deaths after releasing findings that suggest “people will continue to die at unprecedented rates” unless there is a change in approach on drug policies.

On Wednesday, an expert death review panel found that “non-medical models to distribute safer supply are needed.” The panel urged the government to “immediately pursue additional measures to expand access to safer supply by allowing access for people at risk of significant injury or death without a prescription.”

“A fundamentally different approach is urgently required as incremental increases of existing interventions are unlikely to make a meaningful population difference and people will continue to die at unprecedented rates,” the report states.

The panel’s findings come nearly a week after members of a community group in Vancouver were arrested for helping run a “compassion club” to support people who use drugs…