Interior Health prepared for decriminalization support

MERRITT – With certain illegal drugs becoming decimalized, as of January 31, Interior Health (IH) is ready to help out anyone in need.

“Should they come in touch with police and they want help with substances, maybe addiction, and they want some opportunities, the police will be working with us to get them into service,” said President and CEO of Interior Health, Susan Brown.

Police and IH have been in talks about support and Brown said all the details are almost finalized.

“The police already have quite a bit of interface with us on outreach teams and different things so we will be formalizing that channel for people who do want that help and the police will be able to help direct them to us.”

Officials don’t expect an uptick in overdoses as the goal of this exemption is to help people get support. Instead, Brown offered a couple of tips.

“The whole effort of decriminalization is to destigmatize. The hope is that people will not use alone, that is one of the most significant challenges, when they use alone and when they have a toxic supply and there is no one there to help them. Our hope is, the people that do use substances will get it checked before using, if possible, and don’t use alone.”

The decriminalization of certain illegal drugs is in place throughout B.C. and the exemption is in effect until January 31, 2026.