Access to free naloxone in B.C. preventing 4 out of 5 potentially fatal overdoses, report finds – CBC

Researchers call for additional efforts to prevent deaths from toxic drugs

Jun 19, 2026

Thousands of people have died due to the toxic drug crisis in the decade since B.C. declared it a public health emergency. But a new study shows that many more could have died if not for the province’s harm reduction efforts.

Researchers estimated that access to free, take-home naloxone services in the province prevented 76 to 80 per cent of potential deaths due to opioid poisoning, based on modelling and data from 2019 to 2024.

While this number might seem large, Mike Irvine, the study’s lead author and a senior scientist at the B.C. Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC), said that it’s indicative of the number of harm reduction resources teams across the province who are working to make naloxone more accessible.

“It’s quite an incredible number to think about,” he said. “What that situation would look like if these weren’t available, is not worth thinking about.”

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/naloxone-bc-overdose-9.7239347