IN THE NEWS- Opioid toxicity is the leading cause of death for British Columbians aged 10 to 59.
In total, within just the seven years since BC declared a public health emergency due to opioid deaths, more than 12,000 have died here.
Grace Golightly talks to Gord Johns as one person whose eyes have been opened to the realities of the toxic drug emergency in her insightful Substack essay. As the Member of Parliament for Courtenay-Alberni since 2015, Johns has seen his Vancouver Island community hard hit.
He’s seen deaths from toxic drugs within his extended family, his circle of friends and acquaintances, and at every level of society, including community leaders.
Government is “not acting with a sense of urgency,” Johns said in a recent interview. “They come up with excuse after excuse, blaming jurisdiction. But they didn't do that when Covid hit.”