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B.C. continues to face an unrelenting opioid crisis. Projections based on overdose statistics released on July 11 forecast total deaths this year to remain higher than when the crisis was first declared in 2016. In that time, there have been more than 4,400 deaths.

Just let that number sink in for a minute. This is an unmitigated, unprecedented crisis and it deserves government’s full attention.

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Unfortunately, not enough is being done. We need to do much more to treat those with mental illnesses and provide help to those suffering from addictions, as we do for people afflicted by all other chronic physical illnesses.

While Premier John Horgan and the NDP continue to push forward with an insular harm-reduction strategy, they have shown very little attention to proven recovery and prevention initiatives. Continuing to pour more money into harm-reduction services, including replacement therapies and drug-testing kits, may help save lives today but they won’t end the cycle of addiction, especially when it comes to vulnerable youth.