British Columbia has seen more than 10,000 illicit drug-related deaths since a public health emergency was declared in April 2016, according to the province’s chief coroner.
Lisa Lapointe says the province is on course to lose another record number of people to the toxic drug supply this year, with the number of deaths in the first half of 2022 surpassing those in the same period in 2021.
New data from the coroner’s service indicates that at least 1,095 residents died from January to June this year, with an average of six deaths per day.
The report found that more than three quarters of those who lost their lives in 2022 were men, and most were between 30 and 59 years old.
The province says illicit drug toxicity is the leading cause of unnatural death in British Columbia.
In June, Ottawa approved a three-year exception to federal drug laws and, starting next year, British Columbia will become the first province where people will not be arrested or charged with possessing up to 2 .5 grams of certain illicit drugs.
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