B.C. police seizures of medical opioids on the rise, causing concerns safer-supply pills are being diverted

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Data shows Health Canada identified hydromorphone in B.C. police seizures fewer than 100 times annually from 2012 to 2020. The number climbed to 408 times in 2023.

Police seizures of hydromorphone have climbed in British Columbia since the province moved to prescribe the opioid as an alternative to toxic, illicit drugs, according to Health Canada data.

Health Canada notes that the drugs analyzed do not represent the total number of substances seized by law enforcement, and the agency has no information on the origins of the substances, such as whether they come from the illegal market or are diverted pharmaceutical drugs. The B.C. government has faced calls to better monitor diversion and potential unintended consequences from safer-supply programs. Program staff have described diversion as a “common occurrence,” and Provincial Health Officer Bonnie Henry has said better monitoring is needed.

In a statement, B.C.’s Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions noted that hydromorphone makes up a very small proportion of total seizures and that it is prescribed for many reasons and can be diverted at any point along the supply and distribution chain. The ministry said it is implementing recommendations from Dr.

“Maybe someone can’t take the drug exactly when they want, where they want,” Dr. Mallet said. “But I think that is a trade-off that is certainly reasonable.”

 

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