Heroin at the Corner Store - Microsoft · Count the Costs (2016) Transform Drug Policy Foundation....
Transcript of Heroin at the Corner Store - Microsoft · Count the Costs (2016) Transform Drug Policy Foundation....
January 23rd, 2017
Heroin at the Corner StoreRotary Club of Vancouver
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 ParkPhoto: 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)
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Overdose Deaths per 100,000
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Overdose Deaths per 100,000
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Overdose Deaths per 100,000
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Overdose Deaths per 100,000
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Overdose Deaths per 100,000
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 ApproachHe
alth
and
Soc
ial P
robl
ems
Strict Legal Regulation
HeroinCocaine
ProhibitionProhibition with harm
reduction/decriminalizationLight Market Regulation
CommercialPromotion
CannabisMethamphetamine
Tobacco
Alcohol
Criminal Profit Corporate Profit
Public Health
The Harms of ProhibitionCriminal 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 PromotionCorporate 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. GlantzTobacco Control, British Medical Journal (2004)
A Public Health ApproachReduces the Harms of Prohibition and Corporate Promotion
Public Health
Use of psychedelics in therapeutic contexts
Prescription of heroin and stimulants
Decriminalization (Portugal, 2001)
Regulation (cannabis, 2018)
Drug checking
Health Officers Council of BC (2011)
Public Health ApproachHe
alth
and
Soc
ial P
robl
ems
Strict Legal Regulation
HeroinCocaine
ProhibitionProhibition with harm
reduction/decriminalizationLight Market Regulation
CommercialPromotion
CannabisMethamphetamine
Tobacco
Alcohol
Criminal Profit Corporate Profit
Public Health
Responses Avail. for Illegal Drugs(Limited)
Enforcement
Education and awareness
Socially stigmatizedthrough criminalization
Treatment and Harm Reduction
Regulation of CannabisAge
Degree of intoxification
Volume rationing
Limited places to use
Required training prior to use
Maximum volumes for purchase and possession
Training of supplier
Monitoring of use with driving
Illegal dealers pursued by enforcement
Retail outlets licensed and limited
Appearance of retail outlets
Taxed
Licensing, location and opening hours of consumption facilities
Socially stigmatized
Prevention programs
Treatment
Plain packaging
Warning labels
No advertising or event sponsorships
Regulation of HeroinAge
Degree of intoxification
Volume rationing
Limited places to use
Required training prior to use
Registration of purchasers
Licensing of users
Tracking of consumption habits
Drug consumed on location of sale
Prescription only
Maximum volumes for purchase and possession
Training of supplier
Monitoring of use with driving
Illegal dealers pursued by enforcement
Retail outlets licensed and limited
Appearance of retail outlets
Pharmacy specialist required
Price and profit controls
Taxed
Licensing, location and opening hours of consumption facilities
Socially stigmatized
Prevention programs
Treatment available
Plain packaging
Concentration of product is restricted and labeled
Warning labels
No advertising or event sponsorships
Clean needles and health informationprovided with purchase
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)
• Acknowledge the catastrophic failure!
• Stop pretending that more of the same will work!
• Mount a true emergency response - replace the toxic drug supply through public health mechanism
• Stigma a big problem – then decriminalize
• Support safe tables for collaboration on alternative regulatory approaches.
• Engage the brightest minds in creating a new regulatory system. We can do it!
Governments Need to:
Thank you!
drugpolicy.ca