Black markets selling OxyContin has made the phasing out of the addictive substance unpredictable, says Nishnawbe Aski Nation's deputy grand chief.
The number of deaths related to Oxycodone has remained high in Ontario with more than 640 deaths since 2005. In order to combat this, OxyNEO was introduced and OxyContin has since been taken off the shelves.
OxyNEO is intended to be more difficult to abuse because it is not easily crushed, which is necessary if the abuser wants to snort or inject the drug.
Nishnawbe Aski Nation Deputy Grand Chief Mike Metatawabin said since OxyContin went off the market, the price for a pill has gone up and more people are looking toward the black market in order to get it. He said they predicted a mass withdrawal but there were some factors they couldn’t foresee.
“Legitimate prescribed drugs are easy to predict but because there’s an underground market (selling drugs) it’s unrelenting,” Metatawabin said. “(The black market) is unpredictable. Our police officers continue to catch people but it’s still an issue. OxyContin is still present.”
Even though the drugs are off the market, the problems have even escalated and more people are turning to different drugs and alcohol to handle the withdrawal. He said they are just seeing the kind of affect taking the drugs away from people has done.
“There’s so many problems that come with this withdrawal,” he said. “We said there would be an issue once this was taken off the market. We’re doing all we can. We brought this issue to light. The problem is we’re not getting anywhere closer in seeing any collaboration and working together to address the issue.”
He said it has become a battle between the federal and provincial government on whose jurisdiction it is to handle the crisis.
He said they once had an estimate on how much it would cost to set up treatment centres but that number didn’t include all the various other issues First Nation communities have. Narrowing down a proper cost is difficult, he added.
Some communities have taken on the responsibility themselves and created clinics for their community members. Fort Hope First Nation, which declared a state of emergency in 2011, created its own mental health clinic for its residents.
Metatawabin said they need the problems are widespread and they need help to deal with these issues.
“We need programs that will continue in the long term”, he said. “We’re from remote communities. It’s not that simple to get in your car and leave all your family and stay down south in the care of the hospital.”
