under the proposal, individuals can be in possession of as much as two grams of opioids, such as heroin and fentanyl, three grams of cocaine, one gram or 10 rocks of crack cocaine, and 1.5 grams of amphetamines without facing criminal penalties.
the city has also proposed legal thresholds of two grams for mdma (known as ecstasy or molly), 30 units of lsd, 20 grams of psilocybin mushrooms, three grams of ketamine and five grams of ghb.
legal thresholds are also being proposed for prescription medications such as dilaudid (2g), kadian (7.5g), m-eslon (7.5g), oxycodone (2g), methadone liquid (1g), suboxone (120mg), clonazepam (80mg), diazepam (400mg), ativan (80mg), and prescription stimulants (500mg).
“one of the main objectives of the city’s application is to decrease stigma associated with substance use and encourage diversion of people at risk of overdose from the criminal justice system and towards appropriate health and social supports,” the city said in its proposal to health canada.
just 10 people were charged for simple possession last year in vancouver, compared to 476 charges in 2008, but the city says police do still confiscate illegal drugs.
under the proposed vancouver model, individuals found with drug volumes under the allowed threshold limits would not face prosecution and would be able to keep their drugs as long as there was no evidence of other charges such as trafficking.