The Canadian government has announced $3.5 million in funding to expand an initiative that aims to offer a new way to provide people with a safer and regulated supply of opioids to prevent overdoses.
A press release from Health Canada published on Tuesday said that with the investment into the MySafe Society safer supply project will allow the initiative to operate in five sites across four cities in Canada; Vancouver, Victoria, Dartmouth, and London.
“During the COVID-19 pandemic, we must do more to help people using substances to stay safe,” Health Minister Patty Hajdu said in a statement.
“This means using new technology and innovative models, such as the MySafe project, to expand our ability to reach people with opioid use disorder and prevent fatal overdoses.”
MySafe machines look similar to ATMs and after verifying the patient’s identity with a palm scan will provide the patient access to their existing prescriptions for hydromorphone pills. Patients that access the machines are monitored by healthcare practitioners and are connected with health and social services.
The machines also have a number of safeguards in place in order to protect the patients by being tamper-proof and are programmed to only provide the set amount of medication that was prescribed by a physician to registered patients.
Health Canada is providing almost $3.5M to expand the innovative @MySafeProject to now operate in 4 cities across 🇨🇦. The project offers a new and accessible way to provide medication to those with opioid use disorder. Learn more: https://t.co/vnlVZ7RRJa pic.twitter.com/geWZ0q1XOf
— Health Canada and PHAC (@GovCanHealth) March 2, 2021
Last year, overdose deaths had spiked in British Columbia.
According to a story from CBC News, in 2020, 1,716 people died due to illegal drug use, which was a 74 per cent increase from 2019.
MySafe Society is a safe supply initiative that was created as a response to the opioid overdose crisis that has been happening. According to MySafe’s website, more than 15,000 Canadians have died due to an opioid related overdose since January 2016.
“MySafe is designed to address the drug poisoning crisis head-on,” Dr. Mark Tyndall, the executive director of MySafe Society, said. “It provides a low barrier, convenient, and secure way to access a safer drug supply for those most at risk of dying from an overdose.”
According to the press release, each MySafe machine is able to provide medication for up to 48 people, meaning that the machines can reach about 240 people across the country.
“The overdose crisis continues to have devastating effects on communities, including those in Atlantic Canada,” said Darren Fisher, the parliamentary secretary to the minister of health. “Substance use disorder is a health condition that can be managed and treated if people are provided with services that best meets their needs.”
With files from CBC News (Andrea Ross)
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