Abbotsford council has garnered support from several other B.C. communities for a resolution calling on the province to add additional rapid-access detox beds in the Fraser Health region.
Council recently passed the resolution to be submitted to the Lower Mainland Local Government Management Association for debate at their annual convention in May.
If endorsed, the resolution will be considered at the Union of BC Municipalities convention in September.
A staff report to council noted that despite its size and population – approximately two million people – the Fraser Health region has only one publicly funded facility that offers rapid access to detox.
The facility has a total of 24 beds for youth and adults, and the city says the wait times can act as a barrier for those seeking treatment.
The city says the province has committed to “eliminating gaps in the mental health care and substance use treatment system” and to “building an integrated system of care that includes access to a full spectrum of treatment and recovery options.”
The resolution asks that the UBCM lobby the province to provide more funding to open detox centres in the Fraser Health region.
Municipal councils that have so far sent letters to the city in support of the resolution include Greenwood, Clearwater, Harrison Hot Springs, Alert Bay and Daajing Giids in Haida Gwaii.
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