More doctors across Canada should prescribe safer drugs to reduce overdoses: minister

VANCOUVER — Canada’s minister of mental health and addictions says more doctors across the country should be willing to prescribe a safer supply of drugs instead of fearing they will be investigated by their regulatory colleges.

Carolyn Bennett told a news conference in Vancouver that a guidance document by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia could be very helpful in other provinces and territories.

The B.C. college has said physicians who prescribe pharmaceutical-grade alternatives to street drugs as part of a comprehensive treatment plan or a stand-alone harm reduction strategy could better support patients and reduce their risk of overdose and death.

The practice is based on a policy directive created last July by the B.C. ministries of Health and Mental Health and Addictions as part of an urgent response to the overdose crisis.