News/Canada/British Columbia

The annual death toll of people experiencing homelessness in British Columbia has nearly tripled in just a four-year period, according to the B.C. Coroners Service.A new report says at least 458 homeless people died in 2023, up 23 per cent from the year before, when 373 died. The new toll was also nearly three times the 155 deaths reported in 2020.Since 2016, 1,940 homeless people have died in B.C., according to chief coroner Dr. Jatinder Baidwan."The data speaks to the tragic reality of the struggles many face in our communities throughout B.C.," he said in a statement.Homeless deaths appear to be closely related to the toxic drug crisis. According to the coroners service, of the 458 homeless deaths recorded in 2023: 86 per cent were due to "accidental unregulated drug toxicity." 9...

The British Columbia and federal governments have signed a four-year, $670-million pharmacare agreement, giving universal access to contraceptive and diabetes medications. The plan will support nearly 550,000 B.C. residents with diabetes and provide 1.3 million people with a range of contraceptives. It will also improve access to diabetes devices and supplies.Federal Health Minister Mark Holland told a news conference Thursday that while people often talk about the cost of such a plan, the expense of not giving someone with diabetes the medicine they need could be blindness, loss of a limb or even death. He said it is "devastating" to hear about cases where someone wasn't able to adhere to what doctors prescribe because they can't afford it, which leads to "some terrible outcome" that shou...

British Columbia health officials say another travel-related measles infection has been confirmed in the Lower Mainland in a resident who visited Southeast Asia. Fraser Health says in a statement that the case is unrelated to an infection last month involving a resident of the Vancouver Coastal Health region who was also infected after a trip to Southeast Asia.It says the new case involves a Fraser Health resident, and health officials are directly following up with people known to have been exposed to the virus.The statement says members of the public might have been exposed to measles if they were in the Royal Columbian Hospital emergency department from 2:30 p.m. on Monday to 2:30 a.m. on Tuesday. Measles is a highly infectious disease transmitted by airborne spread, but the statement s...

In the fall provincial election campaign, Premier David Eby and NDP candidates made bold promises for investments to improve the health-care system in order to address staff shortages and gaps in vital services.But patient groups and health-care workers who spoke to CBC News say they are disappointed to see several key campaign promises absent from this year's budget, including money for new hospital towers in Nanaimo and Langley and the creation of a catheterization lab for cardiac care in Nanaimo.Donna Hais, chair of the Fair Care Alliance, said that while she was happy to see the province's "recommitment" to funding a cancer centre and long-term care in the region, she feels the lack of investment in promised services will take a significant toll on the health of central and north Vanco...