An astonishing and powerful look at the worst health crisis in recent history-the opioid crisis.
North America is in the middle of a health crisis. Life expectancies are declining. Someone is dying every two hours in Canada from illicit drug overdose. Fentanyl has become a looming presence-an opioid more powerful, pervasive, and deadly than any previous street drug.
The victims are many-and often not whom we might expect. They include the poor and forgotten but also our neighbours: professionals, students, and parents. Despite the thousands of deaths, these victims have remained largely invisible.
But not anymore. Benjamin Perrin, a law and policy expert, shines a light in this darkest of corners-and his findings challenge many assumptions about the crisis. Why do people use drugs despite the risk of overdosing? Can we crack down on the fentanyl supply? Do supervised consumption sites and providing "safe drugs" enable the problem? Which treatments work? Would decriminalizing all drugs help or make things worse?
Perrin answers these questions and many others in this urgent and humane look at the worst health crisis in recent history, drawing on behind-the-scenes interviews with those on the frontlines, including undercover police officers, intelligence analysts, border agents, prosecutors, healthcare professionals, Indigenous organizations, activists, and people who use drugs. Not only does he shine light on this often-veiled crisis, but he also offers a new way forward; one that may save thousands of lives.
