A new report made in consultation with people who use drugs calls for federal decriminalization, expanded access to overdose prevention sites and several other measures designed to mitigate and eventually end the toxic drug crisis.

Seven calls for action are laid out by the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition, which over three years held 13 public consultations. The coalition said nearly 800 people were included in the meetings.

Beeta Senedjani, the coalition's community policy and network co-ordinator, hopes the report will provide Canadians 鈥� and, crucially, policy makers 鈥� insight into the damage the crisis and a lack of available services are inflicting on communities.

鈥淚 believe that in terms of the general public, there's a misunderstanding that what is happening is an increase in substance use, whereas really it鈥檚 the supply that's creating such devastating consequences. That's a nuance that I think is not fully understood.鈥�

The toxic drug supply, poisoned by an influx of fentanyl, has killed over 15,000 British Columbians since the provincial government declared a crisis in 2016, as well as over 47,000 Canadians. Data released by Statistics Canada on Dec. 4 shows in 2023, followed by Alberta and Saskatchewan.

But the coalition's report also comes as federal and provincial governments backtrack from programs meant to confront the crisis.

The B.C. NDP ended its decriminalization pilot program due to public outcry, and last month closed the addictions ministry while making the crisis the responsibility of . Premier David Eby has also by former chief coroner Lisa Lapointe to add non-prescription drugs to its safe supply program.

A has led to the closure of social sites such as Nelson's Coordinated Access Hub earlier this year. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has also promised to end funding for safe supply programs in favour of expanded treatment facilities if he is elected prime minister in next year's federal election.

Senedjani criticized the politicization of the drug crisis. The coalition's report, she said, offers evidence instead of rhetoric.

鈥淲henever the most marginalized people in our community are being targeted by politicians, we need to ask ourselves why, and really look at that with a critical view, because usually it's not in our best interest as a collective.鈥�

The report features 87 recommendations under seven calls to action. They include:

1. The collection of disaggregated statistics for drug fatalities and hospitalizations to better show how the crisis is impacting diverse communities such as Indigenous, African, Caribbean and Black peoples.

Senedjani said current reporting typically focuses on age and gender, and doesn't include more specific demographics for communities that can be used to show how they are being impacted by the crisis in ways that differ from the rest of Canada.

2. Expansion of access to harm reduction services, which are designed for public use and don't feature specialized supports for racialized, Indigenous or LGBTQ2 peoples.

Vancouver's SisterSpace, an overdose prevention site exclusive to women, is a model for how other services might cater to certain demographics.

鈥淲e don't want to then further marginalize people who have multiple marginalized identities in being able to access services that are already so hard to access.鈥�

3. Decriminalization of all criminal penalties for substance use.

Senedjani said feedback heard during the consultations included people who were unable to receive healthcare because they had been labelled as seeking drugs by medical professionals, which also dismissed the validity of their health concerns.

4. The displacement of the toxic drugs with increased access to safe supply that includes drugs of known content and dosage.

B.C.'s safe supply program distributes pharmaceutical opioids, which have been criticized as ineffective substitutes for alternatives such as lab-tested heroin. 

鈥淲e need to think about alternatives, and we need to think about ways to make this make sense and have this meet the needs of the devastating issue that we're facing today.鈥�

5. Meaningful consultation, and compensation, with people who use drugs when developing policy. As an example, Senedjani referred to Reclaim Collection, an advocacy group made up of people with lived experience.

6. Expanded affordable housing availability as well as a more diverse range of options for people in need of services. Senedjani said the drug and housing crises in Canada are intertwined.

鈥淚 think that people as individuals are being blamed for a housing crisis and a toxic drug crisis, when really these are structural, systemic issues that are happening clean across the country, and they require work at the same time on both of those prongs in order to improve social wellness and improve our communities well across the country.鈥�

7. Expanded harm reduction services in housing and shelter settings.

The consultations heard from shelter workers who were traumatized by finding people poisoned to death by drugs at their facilities. Senedjani said Toronto's Integrated Prevention and Harm Reduction Initiative, which was designed to address drug deaths in city shelters by including supervised consumption and mental health case management, is a model that other municipalities should consider.

鈥淚t's important for shelter providers to look at developing proper harm reduction policies, because whether they like it or not it's going to happen, and so they might as well make it safe for everyone involved, including the person accessing the service and the people who are supporting them and trying to do their jobs in a in a proper way.鈥�