VICTORIA, B.C - Today, the BC Coroners Service reported 184 suspected unregulated drug toxicity deaths in June. Sonia Furstenau, Leader of the B.C. Greens and MLA for Cowichan Valley, has issued the following statement:
“Every month is the same thing. The Coroner reports how many more hundreds of British Columbians were killed by toxic drugs. The government and the Minister responsible release the same statement with the same empty platitudes as the month prior and the same ‘commitment’ to solve this crisis. Another month goes by. Rinse and repeat.
Thousands of lives in British Columbia have ended prematurely because of government inaction and an unwillingness to fully implement the evidence-based solutions brought forward by experts, frontline workers, and people with lived experience.
It is staggering that unregulated drug toxicity, as revealed in the Coroner's report last month, surpasses all other causes of death among individuals aged 10 to 59 in British Columbia. In 2023, 77% of those dying are male.
Until we have a government willing to implement accessible mental health services, treatment options, outreach programs to men, and accessible safe supply, this public health emergency will remain a nightmarish rendition of Groundhog Day.”
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Media contact
Federico Cerani
B.C. Green Caucus
+1 250-882-6187 | [email protected]