NAN, Liberals want Oxy decision reversed

Nishnawbe Aski Nation and federal Liberal Party leaders joined forces on Dec. 4 to call for a reversal of the federal government’s decision to approve the production of generic OxyContin.
“Today, we stand united to implore (Health Canada Minister Leona) Aglukkaq and the government of Canada to reverse the decision to approve the production of generic OxyContin,” said NAN Grand Chief Harvey Yesno. “For many members of NAN First Nations, this is a matter of life or death.”
Aglukkaq announced on Nov. 19 that she would not politically interfere with the regulatory approval process for a generic form of OxyContin.
The federal government has since approved six pharmaceutical companies to produce generic forms of the drug, even though NAN has been experiencing epidemic levels of addiction to OxyContin since 2009.
“Some of the reports that we’ve heard are very alarming,” said Deputy Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler. “Some of the communities reported they are seeing up to 70 per cent of their members affected by this. When you hear those types of statistics being reported, you know that it is impacting whole communities.”
Although the recent reformulation of the drug, OxyNeo, was supposed to be tamper resistant and harder to abuse, Fiddler said there have been reports of people getting high on OxyNeo.
“Now with the government’s refusal to intervene with the production of the generic version of (oxycodone), (prescription drug abuse) will just escalate all that much more,” Fiddler said.
“The availability of these drugs will increase and the flow of drugs going to our communities will increase as well.”
Fiddler said he received a letter from Aglukkaq about an hour after the Dec. 4 call for a reversal on the approval of production of generic oxycodone saying she didn’t have time to meet.
“NAN has been steadfast in our attempt to secure the support and resources we require to help our communities from an unwavering federal government who has been largely unresponsive to our appeals for help,” Fiddler said. “Nonetheless, our First Nations have not sat idly by; rather, many have pulled together all of the resources they have in order to try provide detoxification and treatment options for those affected by this addiction.”
The Liberal Party leaders said the federal government’s decision to allow the production of generic forms of OxyContin jeopardizes the health of Canadians and must immediately be reconsidered.
“Abuse of OxyContin has created a genuine public health emergency,” said Hedy Fry, Liberal health critic. “The minister of health must heed the calls and ban the production of generic forms of OxyContin.”
NAN declared a State of Emergency in 2009 due to epidemic levels of addiction to OxyContin among its residents.
During her Nov. 19 announcement, Aglukkaq said the federal government would be imposing tough new conditions on the licenses of dealers who manufacture and distribute products that contain the controlled release formulation of oxycodone.
The new conditions would require dealers to report spikes in sales and changes in distribution patterns, in addition to Health Canada’s current requirements to report loss and theft.
“Our government is taking action to tackle prescription drug abuse,” Aglukkaq said. “This is a serious issue that destroys the lives of individuals and families, and I believe we have the responsibility to work with the provinces and territories to address it head-on.”
Aglukkaq said it should not be up to politicians to determine which drugs should be approved for medical use.
“The issue of prescription drug abuse is bigger than one specific pill, and I want to make sure that legitimate patients have access to drugs that Health Canada scientists determine are safe and effective when used as directed.”
Fiddler disagreed with Aglukkaq’s approach because it puts the onus on other jurisdictions, such as the provinces and law enforcement agencies, to deal with the results.
“In our case, that would be Nishnawbe Aski Nation, which is already severely underfunded,” Fiddler said. “So what she is basically saying is that it is up to you guys to enforce this and to try to address the impacts this will create.”