Vancouver fentanyl-detecting drug service extended

Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) is going to start offering itsdrug-checking service whichallows users to test their drugs for fentanyl and carfentanil at more locations across the city.

The system, which isfree, was previously only available at Insite. On Thursday, the authority announced it will now be offeredat the city's four overdose prevention sites, as well as thePowell Street Getaway supervised injection service.

VCHlaunched the pilot projectonJuly 7, 2016. In the first year of operation, more than 1,400 checks were done 80 per cent of which came back positive for fentanyl.

A statement said Insite clients who got a positive result were 10 times more likely to reduce their dose. Those who did so were25 per centless likely to overdose.

To use the checking system, clients use a test strip originally designed for urine testing to dilute their drugs with water. After a few seconds, a positive or negative reading forfentanylappears.

The authority said it recently discoveredthe method can also detect other potentially deadly opiates, including carfentanil.

Last week, the City of Vancouver saidmore people have died of a drug overdose so far in 2017 than during all of 2016.

As of Aug. 21, the total number of overdose deaths in the city was estimated to be 232. Many involved fentanyl.

Mental Health and Addictions Minister Judy Darcysaid the Vancouver numbers show "there are gaps in services." Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson called the statistics "heartbreaking."

The B.C. Coroners Service said780 people died of a drug overdose across the province in the first six months of the yearan 88 per cent increase from the same period in 2016.

With files from Briar Stewart