New safe supply rules go into effect in B.C., with mixed reactions
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New restrictions on British Columbia’s Secure Supply Program are now in effect.
Some addiction experts worry that the changes will push people toward toxic street drugs, while others say the changes were long overdue.
“The majority of our clients have had no problems with the changes,” said Jake Flood, operations manager for the Umbrella Society, a Victoria-based non-profit that connects people to treatment and recovery services.
that change , To further restrict access to the province’s prescription opioid program or safe supply , Launched on 30 December.
Now, most patients who take prescription opioids like hydromorphone or fentanyl patches must do so under the supervision of a pharmacist or health professional.
Flood says moving toward a secure supply strikes the right balance.
“It’s the people who are not taking the prescribed safe supply and selling it on the street who are having problems,” he said.
The move to eliminate safe supply of take-home comes after the leak of internal RCMP slides revealed that a “significant proportion” of prescribed opioids were being diverted and smuggled into B.C.
Flood says some of those diverted hydromorphone pills, known on the street as “dillies,” will sell for a few dollars each. Flood, who struggled with addiction for five years before seeking treatment, says he and fellow outreach workers were watching those cheap pills get into the hands of teenagers.
“This was their first experience using substances. And unfortunately some of them went on to use more dangerous illicit substances like fentanyl.”
But Nanaimo-based addiction therapist Dr. Jess Wilder says the changes create barriers for her patients, many of whom are homeless.
“I’m seeing patients destabilized as a result of not having access to these drugs,” said Wilder, who co-founded the advocacy group Doctors for Safe Drug Policy.
Shauna Adams says many people rely on the Secure Supply Program, and she is troubled to see it being abused at the expense of those who need it.
Wilder says he’s also heard from pharmacists in Nanaimo and Campbell River who say they don’t have the staff to monitor doses and may be opting out of the secure supply program all together.
“This is a huge strain on our pharmacists,” he said. “We are in a health care crisis right now and that extends to our pharmacy colleagues. So because of capacity, some pharmacies are not able to assist patients in the ways that the government is requesting us to.”
There are some key exceptions to the new rules, including for some rural communities and people who can show their work schedule doesn’t allow them to visit a pharmacy multiple times a day.
Witness dosage does not apply to people who take prescription opioids for pain management, palliative care, or other non-addiction-related medical issues.
Some pharmacies will dispense prescription opioids to people who are overcoming their addiction.
But Wilder says patients living on the streets are still at risk of falling through the cracks.
“I fear that our most vulnerable patients and those most at risk of dying from the toxic drug crisis will be the ones who miss out on these additional supports.”
At its peak, 5,000 people were enrolled in BC’s Secure Supply program. According to the Health Ministry, their number is now around 1,900.
BC Conservative addiction and mental health critic Claire Ratti He says the Safe Supply program has had problems from the beginning and says there is no evidence the program has reduced overdose deaths.
He said the fact that the number of people using the program dropped so sharply with the announcement of the witness dose “leads me to believe that many people were using it for recreational purposes.”
BC Health Minister Josie Osborne was not available for an interview. The new rules are aimed at keeping people alive while connecting them to treatment services, his ministry said in a statement.
But Flood says the province still has a long way to go in providing the treatment beds needed as many of his clients face months-long waits for detox and stabilization.
“The need is great. There’s a lot of demand and we’re not able to meet it.”
