Canada’s Safe-Supply vending machines project is even more important now
Most doctors still lack the will and courage to prescribe safe supply
Tuesday, May 5, 2020
Due to the increase in opioid overdoses, British Columbia declared a public health emergency in 2016. Fentanyl was in town, contributing to thousands of deaths. The nationwide overdose crisis killed about 11 Canadians a day between January 2016 and September 2019. An innovation pioneered by Dr. Mark Tyndall – helpful for any community impacted by drug-related problems, but more relevant amid COVID-19 social distancing – represents an step forward. Tyndall saw the need to provide a safe supply of drugs to people, removing the possibility of adulteration, in a way that supported drug-user autonomy. His idea was to make the opioid hydromorphone (Dilaudid) available through “vending machines” in a project called MySafe. (See also: MySafe: When technology and drug policy meet)
