Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Jennifer Whiteside speaks during a news conference about improving access to mental-health and addiction care for people in the Downtown Eastside in Vancouver, on Friday, May. 31, 2024. British Columbia's Coroners Service says about six people continue to die each day from toxic drug poisoning, though the numbers have dipped compared with 2023.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ethan Cairns

VICTORIA - British Columbia's Coroners Service says the number of people who have died this year from toxic drug poisoning is down from 2023, but an average of six people are still dying every day from using illicit drugs.

The service says it recorded 181 suspected drug poisoning deaths in May and 185 in June, bringing the total number of fatalities in the first half of this year to 1,158.

Acting Chief Coroner John McNamee says the figures reflect a nine per cent decrease in the number of deaths reported during the first six months of last year.

In a statement responding to the latest death toll, B.C.'s minister of mental health and addictions says "the rate of death is at its lowest point in four years."

Still, Jennifer Whiteside says everyone who has died is irreplaceable to their loved ones and the losses reinforce the need to protect people from the risks of toxic drugs.

Nearly 15,000 people have died from toxic illicit drugs since B.C. officials declared the overdose crisis a public health emergency in April 2016.

The coroners' service says fentanyl continues to drive deaths from illicit drugs, with the potent opioid detected in 82 per cent of toxicological tests conducted this year.

Poisoning from unregulated drugs are the leading cause of death in B.C. among people aged 10 to 59.

Nearly half of those who died in May and June were people between the ages of 30 and 49. While men account for 72 per cent of deaths so far this year, the coroners' service says the rate of death among women continues to rise.

Whiteside says the B.C. government is "constantly adding more services and removing barriers for people to access the care they need."

The minister's statement says B.C. has added more than 650 new beds for people experiencing substance-use challenges since 2017. There were 1,000 more people accessing treatment and recovery beds last year than in 2022.

"For adults with complex needs, there is now more high-quality, team-based care available through 500 complex-care housing spaces," Whiteside says.

"We are also scaling up services for people living with a brain injury related to an overdose, through new programs, such as the Cognitive Assessment and Rehabilitation for Substance Use program," the statement says.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 30, 2024.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2024