Heroin at the Corner Store Rotary Club of Vancouver January 23 rd , 2017
Illicit Overdose Deaths and Rate per 100,000 January 1, 2007 – October 31, 2017. BC Coroners Office, 2017.
The United Nations Gang Photo: The Vancouver Sun (January 17, 2012)
The Bacon Brothers
1000 Crosses, Oppenheimer Park Photo: Elaine Brière
Insite (Interior) Vancouver Supervised Injection Site
Mayor Nenshi “Nails It” No fan of supervised injection sites, Calgary’s Mayor Naheed Nenshi, describes SCS: “ I find that they almost feel like an admission that we’re not able to solve the problem , but that said, my personal feelings aside, the evidence is absolutely clear. Absolutely clear. They save people’s lives, and our job today has to be to save people’s lives. ” —CBC News (March 3, 2017)
Overdose Deaths per 100,000 9
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Resilience is the capacity to deal with change and continue to develop. “…the ability of human communities to withstand and recover from stresses, such as environmental change or social, economic or political upheaval. Resilience in societies and their life-supporting ecosystems is crucial in maintaining options for future development. ” —Stockholm Resilience Centre, definition of Social Resilience
Resilience and Adaptability
Resilience and Adaptability
Price, Purity and Investment
Public Health Approach Criminal Profit Corporate Profit Heroin Cocaine Methamphetamine Cannabis Health and Social Problems Alcohol Tobacco Public Health Strict Legal Commercial Prohibition Prohibition with harm Regulation Promotion Light Market reduction/decriminalization Regulation
The Harms of Prohibition Criminal Profit Undermines development and security, fuels conflict Threatens public health, spreads disease and death Wastes billions on drug law enforcement Creates crime and enriches criminals Promotes stigma and discrimination Deforestation and pollution Undermines human rights Count the Costs (2016) Transform Drug Policy Foundation
The Harms of Corporate Promotion Corporate Profit Industry-funded research discredits scientific findings about health dangers Maximizes profit through promotion and misleading safety info Imperative to expand markets and target specific populations Cannabis corporate profits (to be determined) J. Drope, S. A. Bialous, S. A. Glantz Tobacco Control, British Medical Journal (2004)
A Public Health Approach Reduces the Harms of Prohibition and Corporate Promotion Use of psychedelics in therapeutic contexts Prescription of heroin and stimulants Decriminalization (Portugal, 2001) Regulation (cannabis, 2018) Drug checking Public Health Health Officers Council of BC (2011)
Public Health Approach Criminal Profit Corporate Profit Heroin Cocaine Methamphetamine Cannabis Health and Social Problems Alcohol Tobacco Public Health Strict Legal Commercial Prohibition Prohibition with harm Regulation Promotion Light Market reduction/decriminalization Regulation
Responses Avail. for Illegal Drugs (Limited) Treatme ment a and Enfo forcement Harm R m Reducti tion Educa cation a and awaren aw eness Socially ially s stig igmatiz ized through cr crimin inaliz alizatio ion
Regulation of Cannabis Age ge Appe ppearanc nce o of r retail o out utlets Degr egree o of intoxif ific icatio ion Taxed Volume me r rationing Licensing, ng, l location a n and o nd open pening ng hours o of c consumptio ion f facilit ilitie ies Limi mited ed p places es t to u use Socia ially s lly stigmatiz ized Requ equired t d training ng pr prior t to us use Prev even ention p progr grams ms Maximum v m volumes mes f for p purchase e and po nd possession Trea eatmen ment Training o of supplier er Plai ain p packag aging Monitoring o g of us use w e with dr driving ng Warning l g label els Illeg egal d dealer ers p pursued ed b by enforcemen ement No a adv dvertising o g or e even ent Ret etail o outlets l licen ensed ed a and limited ed sponsorships
Regulation of Heroin Age ge Appe ppearanc nce o of r retail o out utlets Degr egree o of intoxif ific icatio ion Pha harmacy s spe pecialist r requ equired Volume me r rationing Price a and pr nd profit c controls Limi mited ed p places es t to u use Taxed Requ equired t d training ng pr prior t to us use Licensing, ng, l location a n and o nd open pening ng hours o of c consumptio ion f facilit ilitie ies Regi gistration o of p purchaser ers Socia ially s lly stigmatiz ized Licen ensing o g of u users Tracking o g of c consump mption h habits Prev even ention p progr grams ms Drug c g consume med o on location o of s sale Trea eatmen ment a available Prescrip iptio ion o only Plai ain p packag aging Maximum v m volumes mes f for Concen entration o n of pr produc uct i is purchase a pur and po nd possession restricted ed a and l label eled ed Training o of supplier er Warning l g label els Monitoring o g of us use w e with dr driving ng No a adver ertising o or ev event s sponsorships Illeg egal d dealer ers p pursued ed b by enforcemen ement Clean needl needles a and he nd health i h information provided w pr d with pur h purchase Ret etail o outlets l licen ensed ed a and limited ed
Consumers Union Report 1972 “On the central issue of narcotics addiction, accordingly, Consumers Union recommends (1) that United States drug policies and practices be promptly revised to insure that no narcotics addict need get his drug from the black market; [...]; (3) that other forms of narcotics maintenance, including opium, morphine, and heroin maintenance, be made avail-able along with methadone maintenance under medical auspices on a carefully planned, experimental basis. ” —Consumers Union Report on Licit and Illicit Drugs (1972)
Vince Cain Report 1994 On legalization: “Canadian laws and United Nations conventions control this matter, but that ought not detract from the reality of the situation in British Columbia. We have the problem, and we must do what we can about it, now. Consequently, I am recommending the establishment of a commission to examine and challenge those legal aspects of the problem , […].” —Report of the Task Force into Illicit Narcotic Overdose Deaths in British Columbia, Office of the Chief Coroner (1994)
Vince Cain Report 1994 “The problem must be looked at with regard to not only the aspect of deaths from heroin and cocaine, but rather the entire smorgasbord of available illicit narcotics, both so-called ”soft” and “hard” drugs. Simultaneously, I am recommending the decriminalization of simple possession of specific “soft” and “hard” drugs, […]. ” —Report of the Task Force into Illicit Narcotic Overdose Deaths in British Columbia, Office of the Chief Coroner (1994)
City of Vancouver 2005 “Recommendation 24: That the Federal Government initiate a process of reviewing Canada's legislative, regulatory and policy frameworks governing illegal drugs with regard to their effecti- veness in preventing and reducing harm from problematic drug use and their effectiveness in enabling municipalities to better address the harm from the sale and use of these substances at the local level AND establish a process with broad participation to consider regulatory alternatives to the current policy of prohibition for currently illegal drugs. ” —Preventing Harm From Psychoactive Substances (2005)
Lancet Commission 2016 “Decriminalise minor drug offences—use, possession, and petty sale: The long experiences in Portugal, the Czech Republic, and other countries with decriminalisation of minor drug offences demonstrate the benefits of treating minor infractions without recourse to criminal sanctions. ” —Lancet Commission on Public Health and Drug Policy (2016)
Lancet Commission 2016 “Scientific approach to regulatory experiments: We believe that the weight of evidence for the health and other harms of criminal markets and other consequences of prohibition catalogued in this Commission is likely to lead more countries (and more US states) to move gradually towards regulated drug markets—a direction we endorse. ” —Lancet Commission on Public Health and Drug Policy (2016)
British Medical Journal 2016 “Evidence and ethics should inform policies that promote health and respect dignity. It is no surprise, then, that (there have been calls for reform, including from the World Health Organization, UNAIDS, the UN Development Programme, and the UN human rights agency, as well as non-governmental organisations, former heads of state, UK parliamentarians, some law enforcers, and medical journals.)” —The war on drugs has failed: doctors should lead calls for drug policy reform (Nov 14, 2016)
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