CISUR in the News
Featured News Item
December
November
- Comment: Canada must double social housing this National Housing Day (Nicole Chaland and Bernie Pauly in Times Colonist)
October
- Concerns raised as Vancouver approves wine-in-grocery-store plan (Adam Sherk on CityNews Vancouver)
- Counterpoint: The evidence shows that safer supply drug programs work (Gillian Kolla, Brittany Barker, Bernie Pauly and Karen Urbanoski in National Post)
September
- Better health, fewer overdoses reported by safe supply users in self-survey (Gillian Kolla on CBC London)
August
- Prescribed fentanyl helps this man manage his addiction. Experts want more access to safe supply (Bruce Wallace on CBC Health)
- With 2-month pilot, Toronto joins wave of Canadian cities legalizing alcohol in parks (Tim Naimi in the Globe and Mail)
- What’s behind the spike in fentanyl overdoses in Mexico? (Jaime Arredondo in Al Jazeera English)
- Just how bad is alcohol? Eight experts weigh in on the risks and supposed benefits of drinking (Tim Stockwell in NBC News)
- 9 Habits Could Help You Live Decades Longer, According To Science (Tim Naimi in Health Digest)
July
- Pints on patios, but not in parks — why drinking alcohol in public spaces is still such a big deal (Tim Naimi on CBC News)
- Necesitamos un cambio drástico en política de drogas: Jaime Arredondo (Jaime Arredondo on W Radio)
- Scaling up community drug-checking services in B.C. could help respond to the overdose crisis (Piotr Burek, Bruce Wallace in Conversation Canada)
- How B.C. can learn from drug checking on Vancouver Island (Piotr Burek on CBC's On the Coast)
June
- For Teens Who Drink and Do Drugs, Here’s How to Reduce the Harm (Adam Sherk in The Tyee)
- Booze prices need to rise, accessibility needs to drop to reduce harm, study says (Tim Naimi in CBC New Brunswick)
- Alcohol policies in every province, territory receive failing grade in meeting public health standards: report (Tim Naimi on CTV News)
- More work needed on B.C.'s decriminalization plan, experts say (Bruce Wallace in Ha-Shilth-Sa)
- It causes seven types of cancer and birth defects. Should alcohol have a warning label? (Tim Naimi on healthing.ca)
- This week provincial health officials condemned allegations of prescribed opioids being resold on the street and getting into the wrong hands - we'll talk with a UVic researcher about the hype around hydromorphone (Bernie Pauly on CBC's On the Island)
- The State of Safe Supply (Bernie Pauly in The Tyee)
- The alcohol health risks every moderate drinker should know (Tim Naimi in Reader's Digest UK)
May
- B.C. gets failing grade on alcohol policies from UVic-led national project (Tim Naimi in Black Press)
- Adding warning labels on alcohol bottles to curb Canada’s drinking problem (Tim Naimi on CJAD Montreal
- Canada’s got a drinking problem — and one senator says Ottawa needs to step up (Tim Naimi on CBC News)
April
- How Toronto’s mayoral hopefuls would tackle the city’s drug crisis (Gillian Kolla in the Toronto Star)
- The boozy story of how we decided alcohol was a health boon in the ’90s—and how it all fell apart (Tim Stockwell in Slate)
- Un plaidoyer en faveur des clubs compassion (Marilou Gagnon on Radio-Canada)
- Opinion: Shutting Down Cannabis Compassion Clubs Hurts Patients and the Public (Marilou Gagnon, Bernie Pauly, Karen Urbanoski and Tim Stockwell in The Tyee)
- Drug checking shows unpredictable list of additives contributing to death toll (Piotr Burek in Ha-Shilth-Ah
- Researchers want Health Canada to post updated data on effects of drinking alcohol (Tim Naimi in Canadian Press)
- Research dispels notion that moderate drinking is good for you (Tim Stockwell in the National Desk)
- Opinion: Closure of cannabis dispensaries and clubs amid drug poisoning crisis a mistake (Marilou Gagnon in the Province)
- Animal tranquilizer found in only small portion of Island street-drug supply (Bruce Wallace in Times Colonist)
- Counting the Cost of Substance Use — and Finding Solutions (Adam Sherk in The Tyee)
- Moderate Drinking Has No Health Benefits, Analysis of Decades of Research Finds (Tim Stockwell in New York Times)
March
- Drinking Alcohol Brings No Health Benefits, Study Finds (Tim Stockwell in HealthDay News)
- Yet Another Study Suggests Drinking Isn't Good for Your Health (Tim Stockwell in Time Magazine)
- 'Hard to keep in stock': Non-alcoholic beer and cocktails creating buzz on Vancouver Island (Tim Stockwell in CTV Vancouver Island)
- The argument for making alcohol more expensive: It could save lives, study suggests (Tim Stockwell in USA Today)
- Involuntary treatment of drug users under B.C.’s Mental Health Act could be deadly, legal group warns (Marilou Gagnon on CTV News Vancouver)
February
- Ever done a borg? Warnings about the 'dangerous and excessive' drinking trend (Adam Sherk in CTV News)
- The Canadian Brewers Taking Dealcoholized Beer Mainstream (Tim Stockwell in Montecristo Magazine)
- Prescription Pills Laced With Meth, Fentanyl Sold in Northern Mexico Pharmacies: Report (Jaime Arredondo in InSight Crime)
- As drug decriminalization rolls out, UVic expert supports what B.C. is trying to do (Bernie Pauly in Black Press)
- B.C.'s decriminalization experiment no match for 'volatile and dangerous' drug supply (Gillian Kolla in Reuters)
- The complicated — and dangerous — economics of Mexican fentanyl (Jaime Arredondo in Los Angeles Times)
- Toronto drug decriminalization request still under review as B.C. exemption program rolls out (Gillian Kolla in CTV News Toronto)
January
- Provincial governments not jumping to act on tighter alcohol warning guidelines (Tim Stockwell in Globe and Mail/Canadian Press)
- How much booze is too much booze? (Tim Naimi on CBC Frontburner)
- New alcohol research shows drinking small amounts can still be harmful to health (Tim Naimi on PBS NewsHour)
- Hangover headaches are the least of your worries. Scientists say drinking can be hard on the brain (Tim Stockwell on CBC Health)
- Navigating Canada's new alcohol guidance (Tim Naimi on CBC's The National)
- Whether alcohol gets warning labels or not, attitudes toward booze are already changing, industry insiders say (Tim Stockwell on CBC BC)
- Even a Little Alcohol Can Harm Your Health (Tim Naimi in New York Times)
- Weed Vs. Booze: Is Either One Less Harmful To Your Health? (Tim Stockwell in Chatelaine)
- More Victorians are getting their drugs checked before using (Piotr Burek/Vancouver Island Drug Checking Project in Capital Daily)
- Why this woman created Sober Babes Vancouver, a sobriety group for 'Dry January' and beyond (Adam Sherk in CBC British Columbia)
- Le nouveau combat de Patrick Brazeau (Tim Stockwell in La Presse)
- Opinion: Canada should resolve to make alcohol more expensive in 2023 (CISUR research in the National Observer)
- ‘One drink is the same mortality risk as one cigarette,’ UVic researcher says (Tim Stockwell in Capital Daily)
November
- What Booze Really Does to Your Body (Tim Naimi in Reader's Digest)
- Alcohol use is linked to cancer — so why aren’t there warnings on bottles? (Tim Stockwell in the Toronto Star)
- Saving Lives One Bathroom at a Time (Marilou Gagnon in the Tyee)
- Deaths From Alcohol—On The Rise For Decades—Soared During Covid Pandemic, CDC Says (CISUR in Forbes)
- Harm reduction workers facing burnout amid dual crises: ‘Too emotionally fraught’ (Gillian Kolla on Global News)
- Critics say recommendations in all-party legislative committee report on toxic drug crisis fall short (Bernie Pauly on CBC's All Points West)
October
September
- Comment: voluntary hospitalization is a zombie idea — why does the NDP keep bringing it back? (Marilou Gagnon in Times Colonist)
- Safer opioid supply program reduces ER visits, hospital admissions: Study (Gillian Kolla in London Free Press/Canadian Press)
- Advocates tout safe supply for drug users, but Nova Scotia doctors aren't convinced (Gillian Kolla in CBC Nova Scotia)
- Rise in Deaths Spurs Effort to Raise Alcohol Taxes (Tim Naimi in New York Times)
August
- UVic scientist wants labels on alcohol to show health risks (Tim Naimi in Times Colonist)
- Carolyn Bennett hopes B.C.’s decriminalization plan reduces stigma around drug use (Bernie Pauly in the Globe and Mail)
- Canada’s low-risk alcohol use guidelines have been slashed to 6 drinks per week. Here’s why. (Tim Stockwell in the Conversation Canada)
- New alcohol guidelines (Tim Naimi on the Jill Bennett Show)
- Advocates call for public health, human rights-focused approach to DTES decampment (Bernie Pauly and Marilou Gagnon in CBC BC)
- B.C. researchers excluded from drug decriminalization review (Bernie Pauly in the Globe and Mail)
- Toronto still waiting for drug decriminalization decision 7 months after applying (Gillian Kolla on CBC Toronto/Canadian Press)
July
- Paying the tab: Increasing alcohol tax would curb deaths in New Mexico, studies show (Tim Naimi in New Mexico in Depth)
June
- Amid grim opioid death projections, Ottawa faces calls to move faster on safe supply (Gillian Kolla on Global News)
- Should small amounts of drugs such as opioids or cocaine be decriminalized? (Gillian Kolla on CBC's Cross Country Checkup)
- Unpredictable potency real danger in opioid crisis, expert says (Bruce Wallace in Times Colonist)
- Canadian cities are legalizing alcohol in parks. Some are celebrating, others worry it's a slippery slope (Tim Naimi on CBC's Cross Country Checkup)
- A move to decriminalization in BC... what will it mean for drug poisonings and deaths on the Island? We spoke with the Vancouver Island Drug Checking project (Bruce Wallace on CBC Victoria)
- Possession of a small amount of illicit drugs will be decriminalized in BC, starting next year (Bernie Pauly on CBC Victoria)
- Decriminalization a good step, but safe supply key: chief coroner (Bernie Pauly in Times Colonist)
- Cancer and alcohol: Advocates push the need for warning labels to help consumers choose safely (Tim Stockwell in Capital Current)
May
- Le tiers des Canadiens sondés ont pris le volant sous l’influence du cannabis (Tim Naimi on Radio-Canada)
- Experts concerned with safe supply review from province (Bernie Pauly on CityTV News)
- More than 500 'completely preventable' drug OD deaths confirmed in Toronto for second consecutive year (Gillian Kolla in the Toronto Star)
- People in Ontario look to B.C decriminalizing illicit drugs (Gillian Kolla on Here and Now Toronto)
April
- Les drogues sécuritaires, le nouveau front d’une guerre idéologique (Gillian Kolla in Radio-Canada)
- Record de surdoses mortelles : est-il temps de fournir des drogues moins toxiques? (Gillian Kolla in Radio-Canada)
- ‘We’re Saving Lives, and Being Punished for Doing It’ (Marilou Gagnon in the Tyee)
- Commentary: 4/20: Cannabis could be safe alternative to toxic drug supply, so why is access being cut off? (Marilou Gagnon in the Georgia Strait)
March
- Incidents of alcohol-related harm also rose in Canada during the pandemic (Adam Sherk on A Little More Conversation)
- Safe-supply pilot project findings promising, but advocates say more action needed (Gillian Kolla in Canadian Press)
- Storefront drug-checking service aims to help drug users make informed choice, not tell people what to do (Bruce Wallace and the Vancouver Island Drug Checking Project in the Times Colonist)
- Changes in illicit drug supply offer challenges for Victoria researchers (Bruce Wallace in Victoria News)
- Safer supply of opioids saves lives: Providing alternatives to toxic street drugs (Gillian Kolla in the Conversation)
February
- L'année 2021 a été une année record pour les décès par surdose en C.-B. (Marilou Gagnon on Radio-Canada)
- NDP MLAs quit legislative committee tasked with studying opioid safe supply programs (Gillian Kolla on CBC News)
- The Buzz Q&A: Why you might be wrong about minimum unit pricing (Tim Stockwell for the Buzz.ie)
- Alcohol pricing: What it’s like to live in a Scandi drink monopoly (Tim Stockwell fo the Buzz.ie)
January
- Alcohol can cause cancer, so why don't most Canadians know that? (Tim Sockwell on CBCs The National)
- 'I don't think anybody is safe from this': Courtenay overdose calls more than double (Bruce Wallace in the Times Colonist)
- Alcohol should have cancer warning labels, say doctors and researchers pushing to raise awarenes of risk (Tim Stockwell on CBC News)
- Benzodiazepines 'a major problem' in illicit drug supply (Bruce Wallace in CBC News)
- Will overdose deaths force an end to the US ‘war on drugs’? (Jaime Arredondo in Daily UK News/Finacial Times)
December
November
- What Does Massive Fentanyl Seizure Say About US-Mexico Security Relations? (Jaime Arredondo for Insight Crime)
- Study: Fatal crashes involving alcohol haven't waned since cannabis legalization (Tim Naimi in ForBoston Business Journal)
- U.S.-Canadian researchers say car crash deaths involving cannabis on the rise in the U.S (Tim Naimi in the Province)
- Alcoholic beverages need labels with calorie counts, Manitoba group say (Adam Sherk in CBC Manitoba)
- New study shows no increase in car crash injuries after marijuana legalized (Russ Callaghan in the Province)
October
- ‘We’re at the crossroads’: MPs, experts hail timely creation of new mental health and addictions minister (Karen Urbanoski at the Hill Times)
- Canada is getting a mental health and addictions ministry. What’s needed to make it work? (Karen Urbanoski in Global News)
September
- An estimated 17 Canadians die every day from an opioid overdose. Here’s how the federal political parties plan to tackle the crisis (Gillian Kolla in the Toronto Star)
- Crise des opioïdes : des solutions du terrain pour les partis fédéraux (Gillian Kolla in Radio-Canada)
- Island Health, BC Housing working to find isolation sites as COVID-19 spreads through street community (Bernie Pauly in CHEK News)
- Nursing professor concerned with health officials' lack of preparation for COVID in supported housing (Bernie Pauly on CBC's All Points West)
- OPINION: ‘We need concrete actions, now’—A letter from Victoria front-line healthcare and service workers (Marilou Gagnon in Capital Daily)
- Victoria mayor says housing, not 24/7 camping should be available to homeless COVID-19 patients (Bernie Pauly on CHEK News)
August
July
- B.C. expands safe supply to curb overdose crisis death toll (Bernie Pauly in Canadian Press)
- As Vancouver allows drinking public parks, it remains illegal in Greater Victoria (Tim Naimi on CHEK News)
- Drinking in parks (Tim Naimi on CBC's BC Today)
- P.E.I. alcohol sales rose in 2020, despite record low visitor numbers (Tim Stockwell on CBC PEI)
- Opinion: Daphne Bramham: When it comes to drug policy, politicians aren't following the evidence (Tim Naimi and Tim Stockwell in the Vancouver Sun)
June
- Research Adds to Weight of Evidence on People Checking Drugs They Sell (Bruce Wallace and Gillian Kolla in Filter
- Public shaming, hate perpetuates further substance use: UVic researcher (Karen Urbanoski in Black Press)
- Cheaper, more potent cannabis found in B.C. government-run stores: study (Tim Naimi in Canadian Press)
- UVic study finds cannabis has become cheaper, more potent since legalization in 2018 (Tim Naimi in Black Press)
- B.C. has seen over 850 deaths from drug overdoses in 2021, most ever reported in the first five months of a year (Bruce Wallace in CHEK News)
May
- More Canadians hospitalized from substance use since pandemic started, report finds (Tim Naimi on CBC British Columbia)
- Ontario's opioid-related death toll surged to 2,050 during pandemic in 2020, new report finds (Gillian Kolla on CBC Toronto)
April
- Some concerns are being raised about the B.C. government's plan for clearing homeless campers from public parks by the end of the month (Bernie Pauly on CBC Victoria)
- Five years into the overdose crisis, Victoria's street drugs are stronger than ever (Bruce Wallace in the Capital Daily)
- Op Ed: Why Does BC’s Budget Give Short Shrift to Safe Supply? (Marilou Gagnon in the Tyee)
- Budget provincial en Colombie-Britannique : 5 choses à surveiller (Marilou Gagnon in Radio Canada)
- 'Dying a slow death': Father appeals for destigmatization of drug use amid overdose crisis (Bruce Wallace in the Times Colonist)
March
- Should Your Cocktail Carry a Cancer Warning? (Tim Naimi in the New York Times)
February
January
- Canadian Research on Marginalized Groups (Cecilia Benoit in The Future Economy)
- New U.S. Dietary Guidelines Unveiled: Here’s What’s Changed and What’s Stayed the Same (Tim Naimi in Everyday Health)
- ‘It’s very alarming’: Ontario seeing unprecedented spike in stimulant-drug deaths (Gillian Kolla in TVO)
- Expert draws link between Ontario's support of liquor industry, high impaired driving numbers (Tim Stockwell in CBC Thunder Bay)
- Pallister Government’s Liquor Privatization Plan Will Strain Manitoba’s Healthcare System, Health Experts Warn (Tim Stockwell in PressProgress)
- Canada’s drinking problem: why alcohol is the new cigarette (Tim Stockwell and Adam Sherk in the Globe and Mail)
- BC Today: Changing Your Relationship with Alcohol (Tim Naimi on CBC BC)
- Dry January (Tim Naimi on CBC Ontario)