A rise in suspected drug overdoses across B.C. prompted renewed calls for action from the provincial election campaign trail Friday.
B.C. Emergency Health Services said ambulances responded to a record 130 suspected overdoses on Wednesday — including 18 in the region covered by the Vancouver Island Health Authority. The previous high was 121 calls on Nov. 20.
There were 109 overdose calls on Thursday, including 19 in the VIHA region.
NDP Leader John Horgan, who was campaigning on southern Vancouver Island, pledged to put “everything into the mix” to tackle the problem if he wins the election on May 9.
One of his first moves, he said, will be to appoint a minister of mental health and addictions to focus on the overdose crisis linked to the rise of illicit fentanyl and carfentanil. The B.C. Green Party has proposed a similar ministry.
“Mental health and addictions is in crisis now and there should be one person accountable every day to make sure that we’re meeting benchmarks, we’re making sure that fewer people’s lives are at risk and that the services are there for them when they need them,” said Horgan, who is seeking re-election in Langford-Juan de Fuca.
“That’s the starting point, but you don’t erase 16 years of neglect overnight. This crisis has been designated by the public health authorities as a crisis for the past 12 months and it’s just not good enough. It’s getting worse not better.”
The latest statistics from the B.C. Coroners Service show that 120 people died from overdoses in March — the third highest monthly total on record. The numbers represented a 51 per cent increase from the 79 deaths in March 2016 shortly before the province declared a public health emergency.
The Liberals, who have been in power for the past 16 years, say they were the first provincial government to form an expert joint task force. The party says it has invested “upward of $100 million” in acute and long-term recovery and harm-reduction programs to save lives.
“I mean, what’s going on is unparalleled,” said Liberal candidate Karen Bill, who is seeking election in Victoria-Beacon Hill.
“Government’s following the advice of the provincial health officer and since the public health emergency was declared in April of 2016 we and our partners have enacted a wide range of measures to make an immediate difference.”
She noted the Liberals tabled a budget in February that committed a further $165 million to mental health and addictions programs, largely focused on children and youth.
“By the fact that we have a strong economy, we are able to invest in things like mental health services and programs for people who are in vulnerable situations,” she said.
But B.C. Green Party candidate Kalen Harris, who is running in Victoria-Beacon Hill, said the Liberals have abandoned people by focusing on job creation and under-funding mental health services.
“If you are chronically depressed, if you are dealing with a personality disorder issue or you are chronically malnourished, you are not capable of having the mental health required to go and get a job,” he said.
“So if we’re not prepared to support people on that level, then we’re clearly doing things wrong as a government. I think the people of B.C., and certainly of Victoria, have seen the horrible effects of the neglect.”
Harris said the Greens would put more emphasis on prevention and early treatment of mental health and substance abuse issues.
“We need to think about helping people through their issues instead of judging them,” he said.
