A man prepares heroin to be injected at the Insite safe injection clinic in Vancouver in May, 2011.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press

On Jan. 31, 2023, a “three-year experiment” on drug decriminalization began in British Columbia.

Specifically, Health Canada granted the province an exemption under section 56 of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act that allowed anyone over the age of 18 to possess up to 2.5 grams of illicit drugs, such as heroin and fentanyl, as well as cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA, for personal use.

While the drugs were still illegal, people could use them in specific locations without fear of prosecution.

The idea was to reduce the stigma that comes with drug use and shift the response to substance misuse away from criminal justice and toward public health.

So, what’s happened since?

Fate of B.C.’s drug decriminalization pilot to be determined

As part of the exemption, regular reports were published. These reports contain a lot of data but not much information. A quick reading of the

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