8 years since B.C. declared public health emergency, toxic drug crisis rages on

In a statement released Sunday, Premier David Eby said the toxic drug crisis has had a “catastrophic impact” on families and communities.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry further noted in the statement that the public-health emergency has strained the province in “unprecedented ways.”

government and public health officer announced the emergency in April 2016 and since then more than 14,000 people have died, most of them from the highly potent opioid fentanyl.

But with both provincial and federal elections looming, Graham fears “the toxic politics is what's going to be killing people next,” as politicians vie to win votes touting ineffective solutions to the deadly crisis.

He said the situation needs to be recognized as a “health crisis,” adding his government is trying to build and improve the province's mental-health and addictions-care systems.

Henry, meanwhile, said drug users come from “all walks of life,” often dealing with trauma, and those who try to free themselves from addiction have to go through a recovery process that isn't “linear” or hinged upon total abstinence, she said.