B.C. premier says zero chance of no-prescription opioids [Video]

British Columbia Premier David Eby says there’s a “zero per cent chance” the province will implement recommendations by the provincial health officer that alternatives to opioids and other street drugs be made available without a prescription.

Eby says he has “huge respect” for Dr. Bonnie Henry, who he said saved countless lives during the COVID-19 pandemic, adding that it’s OK they occasionally have a difference of opinion.

He told an unrelated Friday news conference his position is “non-negotiable,” and B.C. will not be moving to a model where medical professionals are not “directly involved” if people use “harmful and toxic drugs.”

Henry said on Thursday that drug prohibition strategies have not only failed to control access to controlled substances but have also created the toxic unregulated drug supply that has killed more than 14,000 people since a health emergency was declared in B.C. eight years ago.

Her report says 225,000 …