Alberta Health Services latest report shows a spike in drug poisoning deaths

Newly released data shows the province of Alberta is seeing a big jump in overdose deaths.

“To release that on a long weekend without comment, without ministerial media availability — it’s just it almost seems that the province does not want Albertans to pay attention to this, those of us who have lost a loved one, we do pay attention,” said Petra Schulz, co-founder of Moms Stop the Harm.

“What other health conditions could see 5 Albertans die and the Government not even have a comment on it,” she added.

Newly released data shows five Albertans die of overdose every day. When comparing deaths in the first seven months of the year, 2023 has more deaths with 1,169 — an increase of 14.5 per cent.

The Moms Stop the Harm advocacy group, says the government should stop and see what they can do differently to get different results.

“This year in April we saw the highest numbers ever recorded in Alberta, yet the province moves in the same direction, doing the same thing over and over regardless of what the outcome is,” Schulz said.

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Most of the substance-related deaths that have been released so far this year happened in Calgary and Edmonton.

“The nationwide addiction crisis remains a big concern for our government, which is why we have created the Alberta Model, making recovery readily available for any Albertan,” the Government of Alberta said in a statement to CityNews. “Since 2019, more than 10,000 treatment spaces have been added and are helping free Albertans from the deadly disease of addiction, with more on the way through the opening of 11 recovery communities throughout the province.”

Moms Stop the Harm says the approach of the government is incorrect and safe drugs together with safe consumption sites should be considered instead of forced rehab.

“They call it an addiction crisis but it’s not an addiction crisis, it’s a crisis of toxic poisoned drug supplies,” Schulz said. “If the problem is a toxic supply, more treatment is not the answer because people don’t live enough to get there. We need to expand harm reduction again and we also need to provide people with safe alternatives regulated alternatives to toxic street drugs.”

In June, Premier Danielle Smith said safe supply is not the approach in Alberta, adding, the provincial government doesn’t believe that enabling people in serious opioid addiction is the pathway.

The Alberta substance use surveillance system report shows most unintentional opioid poisoning deaths happen in private residences and public spaces where fentanyl appears as the first source of drug poisoning deaths.