Evidence
Between January 2016 and March 2019, an estimated 12,800 Canadians died from an opioid-related overdose
EVIDENCE
Position Papers
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Read the recent position statement supporting decriminalization from the Canadian Society of Addiction Medicine: https://csam-smca.org/addiction-is-not-a-crime/ and their policy brief published in The Canadian Journal of Addiction: https://journals.lww.com/cja/Fulltext/2021/03000/Policy_Brief__CSAM_in_Support_of_the.3.aspx
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Read the recent position statement from the American College Of Obstetricians and Gynecologists endorsing decriminalization to ensure that pregnant people and their fetuses can avoid the harms of criminalization and incarceration during pregnancy:https://www.acog.org/clinical-information/policy-and-position-statements/statements-of-policy/2020/opposition-criminalization-of-individuals-pregnancy-and-postpartum-period
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Read the recent policy statement from Doctors of BC titled Illicit Drugs Toxicity/Overdose Crisis which calls for “decriminalization of simple possession of all controlled substances for personal use,” among a variety of other recommendations and commitments.
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Opinions
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Read recent articles from Doctors for Decriminalization members.
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Conflating drug use and criminality is reinforcing racism in the courts
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Changing how police departments respond to overdose calls could save lives
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Bill C-22 doesn’t go far enough to decriminalize drug possession and use
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