The City of Hamilton is exploring whether to declare a state of emergency as it grapples with an opioid crisis, with the municipality’s top doctor saying such a step could help it respond to a growing problem.
A motion was introduced and carried unanimously on Jan. 12 to have the city's top doctor determine the threshold of opioid-related deaths and overdoses that would warrant such a declaration.
"Looking at the worsening opioid crisis, a lot of this has to do with the toxicity of the illegal drug supply and the contamination with fentanyl and the challenges that brings for people who do use drugs," she said, speaking generally about the crisis in Canada and around the world. "Drug use is not necessarily contained to a specific population by any means, but we are seeing a disproportionate health impact on folks who are multiply marginalized or experiencing homelessness in our community," Wilson said.
Hamilton paramedics responded to 814 incidents related to suspected opioid overdoses in 2022, according to city data, compared to 430 such incidents in 2017. Opioid deaths have increased in Ontario by more than 100 per cent since 2017 and took a marked jump when the pandemic hit in March 2020. In addition to a tainted drug supply and an increasing presence of fentanyl, he cited rising rent and other living costs as main factors behind crises like Hamilton's.
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