As the opioid crisis continues to claim lives, B.C. has rolled out a province-wide help line to help connect individuals dealing with addictions to resources.

But the confidential toll-free line at 1 (833) 804-8111 will only be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. seven days a week ,and it is not clear when access will expand. 

B.C.'s Minister Mental Health and Addictions Jennifer Whiteside announced the line Tuesday (Aug. 27) at the new St. Paul's Hospital and Health Campus in Vancouver. 

The Opioid Treatment Access Line connects callers to regional doctors and nurses, who can prescribe life-saving opioid medications. The line will also connect callers to regional health-care teams for ongoing treatment and support within their community.  

The opioid crisis has claimed more than 14,000 lives since 2016 and government estimates at least 125,000 British Columbians live with what experts call opioid-use disorder. An estimated 24,000 people currently undergo opioid agonist treatment, which sees them receive suboxone or methadone to reduce their cravings and prevent severe withdrawal symptoms.

Whiteside said the line will help British Columbians regardless of where they live. Government considers St. Paul's Road to Recovery program a model for the rest of province and the new line essentially serves as the province-wide equivalent Road to Recovery line. 

"When people struggling with opioid addiction decide to reach out for help, they need access to treatment and care quickly, free from barriers," Whiteside said.

However, one barrier could be the hours. Whiteside said authorities want to make sure that the line works properly and that callers get connected to the right resources in these early days.

"We are certainly looking at scaling up," Whiteside said. "We know that it is absolutely critical to provide services for people after normal hours." 

Dr. Andy Ryan, Road to Recovery's medical director, said the line will expand eventually. At a minimum, it can connect individuals to resources seven days a week, 365 days a year, she said, adding that most interactions with caretakers take place during working hours. 

"We will do it our best, as much as possible, to try to accommodate people when they are calling the line. If anyone contacts (the line) after hours and leaves us a message, we will, of course, be calling them back and connect with them as soon as possible." 

Ultimately, Ryan predicts that the program successfully expand the hours of operations in the "near future." 

Whiteside presented the line amidst questions about harm reduction measures. A Fraser Health website offering harm reduction supplies for free through home delivery recently significantly reduced the number of products available after the province ordered a review. 

The website originally allowed users to add supplies such as inhalation and injection tools such as syringes and glass tubes, naloxone kits and fentanyl screening strip kits to a virtual basket and checkout. Products for drug injection or inhalation are no longer available. 

This online portal is not the only source of controversy. 

On Monday (Aug. 26) Gwen O鈥橫ahony, a former New Democrat MLA, now running for the Conservative Party of B.C. in Nanaimo-Lantzville posted a video of herself near a kiosk of what Island Health calls "discretely packaged harm reduction items" including "naloxone kits, take-home drug testing strips, and syringes and safe disposal containers."

The kiosks, which resemble vending machines, are located outside emergency departments at Campbell River's North Island Hospital, Nanaimo Regional General Hospital and Victoria General Hospital.

Island Health describes these dispensaries as an alternative for people who currently visit emergency departments seeking harm reduction supplies and services, noting that the offered supplies are those most commonly requested from emergency departments. 

"Research shows that harm reduction supply kiosks can reduce overdose rates, decrease new HIV and Hepatitis C infections, and can distribute more life-saving naloxone and testing strips than in-person services," Island Health says on its website.

O鈥橫ahony, however, issued a joint statement with Leader John Rustad denouncing them. 

鈥淚t is appalling and irresponsible to have a vending machine handing out drug paraphernalia right outside a hospital, where people are supposed to be seeking help for their health, not engaging in self-destructive behaviour,鈥� Rustad said. 

This criticism has not gone unnoticed.

Speaking at an unrelated event Tuesday (Aug. 27), Premier David Eby said he asked Whiteside to review of the "distribution methods" of harm reduction supplies that do not involve direct contact.

"We want to make sure that people are in contact with the system, that they are talking to a doctor or a nurse or a social worker....and we also want to keep as many people alive as possible alive, " Eby said. "It's a delicate balance and we want to make sure we get it right in a way that ensures community safety and confidence in these approaches." 

When asked about the scope of the review, Whiteside did not offer specifics.

"We will check in with health authorities to ensure that those connections are being made," she said. "But I would note that the vast majority of harm reduction supplies are distributed through public health units, through the (B.C. Centre for Disease Control), through programs that we have in place in the construction industry...," she said, adding that government is doing everything possible, while learning and adapting to changing circumstances. 

Whiteside also sidestepped questions about whether the kiosks will continue. "We don't want to pause trying to save people's lives," she said. "We want to make sure that people are connected to care," she said.

鈥攚ith files from Sobia Moman