Written by Gage Gosselin

The Government of Saskatchewan is making access to fentanyl and benzodiazepine drug checking strips easier, to help curb the number of overdose deaths within the province. The test strips are now available to the general public with the purpose of at-home drug checking. 

The Government of Saskatchewan stated in a release that fentanyl is 50 to 100 times more toxic than other opioids. 149 confirmed accidental drug toxicity deaths within Saskatchewan in 2021 involved fentanyl. Fentanyl is hard to detect, as it cannot be seen, smelled, or tasted. 

The release stated that mixing benzodiazepines (benzos) with opioids will increase the risk of an overdose, as they both contain sedative properties. Naloxone, which would normally reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, is not effective when it comes time to counteract benzos. 

"The tragedy of overdose and toxic street drug deaths continue to be a heavy burden on our communities," Mental Health and Addictions Minister Everett Hindley said. "Our government remains committed to expanding addictions services, and providing widespread access to drug checking strips is one way to save lives."

Take-home test strips are now available at over 30 locations around the province. Locations can be found here.

"We are grateful anytime we see the adoption of evidence based harm reduction measures on a large scale," Provincial Lead of Mom's Stop the Harm Canada Marie Agioritis said. "It gives me hope that someone else's mother could be spared the pain of burying a child. These test strips will save lives. Let's get them into the hands of people who need them."

"This is a major step to help reduce the risk of overdoses throughout Saskatchewan," Prairie Harm Reduction Executive Director Jason Mercredi said. "Prairie Harm Reduction is pleased to be a partner with the Government of Saskatchewan to ensure this harm reduction tool is widely available to everyone in Saskatchewan, both urban and rural."

The Saskatchewan Government states that a negative test strip does not guarantee the substance is safe and is only to check if certain fentanyl or benzos compounds are present in the drug that is being tested. The test strips do not detect other drugs and will not show the amount of fentanyl or benzos present within the substance. The strips are an additional tool to limit potential overdoses. 

The Ministry of Health asks all those using street drugs to not use alone, and rely on the buddy system. The National Overdose Response Service can be reached at 1-888-688-6677, and Naloxone kits that reverse opioid overdoses are available throughout the province. More information about the kits can be found here. 

The Government release states that if an overdose occurs, to call 911. Under the Good Samaritan Act, those calling for assistance during an overdose will not be charged for possession of an illegal substance. 

The Ministry of Health stated that it will invest a record $458 million for mental health and addictions services in 2021-22, an increase of $23.4 million over last year’s budget. In the investment, $2.6 million will go towards harm reduction services across the province, an increase of $1.4 million from last year. Test strips for drug checking are just one of several new harm reduction initiatives this year.