(Canadian Press)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)/rdnewsNOW

in crisis mode

Safe drug supply a ‘logical’ next step, say advocates as province studies the matter

Feb 18, 2022 | 3:42 PM

Later this spring, the Government of Alberta will receive a report on the subject of having a safe drug supply for the province.

The report is to be compiled by the Select Special Committee to Examine Safe Supply, which is accepting written submissions until March 4. Interested groups or individuals can do so here.

That committee was established in December, and will ultimately present its report, with recommendations, to members of the Legislative Assembly.

According to a government release, the committee’s mandate is limited to consideration of:

• examining the concept of “safe supply,” defined as the provision of pharmaceutical opioids, heroin, crystal methamphetamine, cocaine or other substances to people who are addicted to or dependent on these substances;
• whether there’s evidence a proposed “safe supply” would impact fatal or nonfatal overdose, drug diversion or associated health and community impacts;
• whether there’s evidence a proposed “safe supply” would be accompanied by increased risks to individuals, the community, other entities or jurisdictions;
• examining historical evidence regarding overprescribing of opioids; and
• whether there’s evidence a proposed “safe supply” would be accompanied by any other benefits or consequences.

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EACH+EVERY, an Alberta-based business coalition which supports harm reduction and policy-based solutions to the drug poisoning crisis, says ensuring a safe supply is a critical next step.

Co-founder Euan Thomson says people typically associate the crisis being linked to over-prescribing of opioids by physicians, but in recent years, the danger stems more so from an unsafe supply.

“Prescribing in Alberta went down after 2016, while drug poisonings have skyrocketed,” says Thomson. “At Safeworks in Calgary, most people coming in are using illegal street drugs, and since 2019, there’s been an explosion of overdose rates, from one per cent to now eight out every 100 people.”

According to the Alberta Substance Use Surveillance System, there were 1,190 adverse events at Red Deer’s overdose prevention site (OPS), or 831 through three quarters.

Through three quarters of 2021, there were 1,065 adverse events. Fourth quarter numbers aren’t yet available.

EACH+EVERY also compiled data showing the drugs being seized by police across Alberta from January 2020 through September 2021.

From start to finish, carfentanil — a drug 100x stronger than fentanyl and meant for elephants — went from being found in about 1.4 per cent of seizures to 7.4 per cent.

According to Thomson, many drug users’ bodies have adapted to fentanyl’s effects, allowing use without incapacitation. However, with a constantly evolving contaminated drug supply, users are reacting differently.

“I’ve witnessed a benzodiazepine poisoning at a supervised consumption site, and this was someone I knew could usually handle their opioids. They could hold a conversation if they wanted, but with this experience, they didn’t remain lucid, couldn’t stand, and was on the verge of losing consciousness,” Thomson says.

“As you enforce prohibition laws, and do so aggressively, distributors and manufacturers need to meet that new challenge by making drugs stronger and smaller. This played out with fentanyl in 2014, totally replacing the heroin supply, and now fentanyl’s being replaced by carfentanil.”

If there was safe supply, manufactured by pharmaceutical companies, the result is a lot of saved lives, he concludes.

Earlier this month, EACH+EVERY published an open letter explaining it was withdrawing from Special Committee participation, citing its belief the government isn’t working in good faith, and accusing it of forming a committee comprised of many openly opposed to safe supply.

“Safe supply is being rolled out in many parts of Canada, with over a dozen pilot projects,” says Thomson, noting Alberta hasn’t capitalized on federal dollars for such projects announced in 2020. “Run all these pilots at once ideally and evaluate them on the fly. If it really doesn’t look good, so be it, but the worst thing we could be doing right now is nothing, and that’s what’s happening.”

Stacey Carmichael, Executive Director at Turning Point Society, which operates Red Deer’s OPS, calls the current situation tragic, adding that the fix is easy.

“It’s so logical that we would do this with a safe supply. Ideology, morality, all that stuff aside, if there was a a sudden increase of people overdosing or dying from drinking beer, things would change. This isn’t a war on drugs, it’s a war on people who use drugs,” she says.

“People have always used drugs and will continue to, so we must acknowledge that in order to keep many more people alive. If we could drop the stigma, it would change things so profoundly. That’s my dream.”

To date, zero people have died at the OPS, though limitations such as not being able to offer inhalation and smoking booths do mean people are falling through the cracks, Carmichael admits.

“It is the most tragic crisis with such simple solutions. It’s mind-boggling.”