'We’re going to have more bodies piling up': Sask. plan to alter methadone formula is risky, user says
The Saskatchewan government plans on changing its methadone formula for patients being treated for opioid addiction — something frontline workers warn could cause people to resort back to taking illicit drugs.
Rob McCarroll says he became addicted to opioids in his late teens while he was treated for two separate brain tumours.
He’s been working to overcome it through methadone treatment for the past three decades.
In 2014, while McCarroll was living in Vernon, B.C., the province changed its methadone formula, which he says pushed him back to street drugs as he began feeling withdrawal symptoms.
“It’s horrible to have to go back to sticking needles in your arm, getting up in the morning and the first thing you do is having to go out searching for drugs,” he told CTV News
Drug users and experts in B.C. say the methadone formula switch in 2014 contributed to the province’s opioid crisis.
McCarroll left B.C. to move to Saskatchewan in 2017 to continue his methadone treatment.
“I didn’t want to become a statistic,” he said.
However, Saskatchewan plans on making a similar change to its formula.
The Ministry of Health said Methadose, a pre-mixed formulation, and Metadol-D will eventually replace the compounded methadone currently available at pharmacies.
McCarroll is asking the province to reconsider.
“We’re going to have more bodies piling up because this stuff, it doesn’t do what they promise it will, it doesn’t take away the cravings,” he said.
McCarroll said on methadone he would be able to take one dose in the morning and wouldn’t need to take a second dose until the next night, whereas, on Methadose, he would start getting antsy after 14 hours.
In 2020-2021, 3,534 people received methadone for opioid agonist therapy, according to the Ministry of Health.
It said the new formulations are safer.
TIMING 'COULDN'T BE WORSE'
However, Prairie Harm Reduction Executive Director Jason Mercredi said it will put extra pressure on agencies like his.
“If their cravings are going up and they’re going to relapse, that’ll likely mean they’re going to turn back to street drugs and that could mean a death sentence at this point in time,” he said.
Mercredi also questions the timing of the formula change.
“I think the timing couldn’t be worse to be honest. We’re still in the middle of COVID-19, but then on top of that, the overdose crisis is ramping up month over month,” he said, adding that local street drugs are becoming more contaminated and deadly.
Peter Butt, a consultant in addiction medicine at the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA), said while having a consistent formula makes sense from a quality assurance and cost perspective, people who are already on the methadone treatment should be given the option to stay on it.
“It can destabilize people when the medication that frankly their life has become reliant upon to avoid relapse and all the problems that go with that that they’ve experienced in the past, they do not want to go back there,” Butt said.
“This leads to anxiety when there’s a change and really the whole ritual of receiving the medication and being on it and having the same bottle, the same type of medication on a consistent basis.”
Butt said the transition needs to be carefully thought out as Methadose and Metadol-D can have different effects on people.
He said people who depend on these treatments also need to be consulted.
“We want to feel comfortable and medicated properly, and I don’t think that’s too much to ask,” McCarroll said.
METHADOSE USED ACROSS CANADA
The Ministry of Health said compounded methadone will be available to patients who are severely allergic to Methadose or Metadol-D.
It said all Canadian provinces have introduced Methadose and that it will be working with other jurisdictions to learn from their experiences.
“As part of the transition, patient and prescriber education is being developed to provide some guidance on how to address these potential concerns. We will monitor the transition to identify and respond to any issues,” the Ministry of Health said in a statement to CTV News.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
McGill University seeks emergency injunction to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
'We have laws': Premier Smith says police action justified in Calgary
The actions, including the decision to use non-lethal force, to disperse pro-Palestinian protesters from the University of Calgary campus were justified, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Friday.