**** CNS Media Release
Amendments Strengthen Action Against Opioid Companies
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The Province is updating legislation that holds opioid companies accountable for their actions and provides the government options to try to recover past and future healthcare costs due to opioid-related diseases, injuries or illnesses.
Amendments to the Opioid Damages and Health-care Costs Recovery Act introduced today, October 12, make consultants subject to potential legal action and align definitions and formulas in the act with legislation in other provinces and territories.
“Hundreds of Nova Scotians are dealing with opioid-use disorder, and dozens die each year from opioid-related overdose,” said Michelle Thompson, Minister of Health and Wellness. “Opioid manufacturers, distributors and their consultants should be held accountable for the deceptive practices that have led to opioid use disorder and overdose in Nova Scotia and across Canada.”
Proposed amendments to the act include:
— adding a direct cause of action against consultants to opioid manufacturers/wholesalers
— altering the definition of opioid product to include “active ingredient”
— allowing for different formulas to be used to calculate the market share of wholesaler and manufacturer defendants
— providing a direct action by the federal government.
British Columbia filed a lawsuit in August 2018 against more than 40 opioid manufacturers and distributors on behalf of all Canadian jurisdictions. Several other provinces and territories have passed similar legislation to support the class action process.
Amendments to Nova Scotia’s act will build in accountability and help address factors affecting health and well-being, which are part of Action for Health, the Province’s strategic plan to improve healthcare.
Quick Facts:
— 63 Nova Scotians died from opioid overdoes in 2022
— Nova Scotia’s Opioid Use and Overdose Framework includes strategies to reduce the effects of opioid use and overdoses by focusing on understanding the issue, prevention, harm reduction, treatment and prescribing practices, and criminal justice and law enforcement
— Nova Scotia’s Take Home Naloxone Program provides free naloxone kits to all Nova Scotians at risk of an opioid poisoning and those who are most likely to witness and respond to an opioid poisoning
— since 2017, the Take Home Naloxone Program has distributed 32,365 kits
Additional Resources:
Nova Scotia’s Opioid Use and Overdose Framework: https://novascotia.ca/opioid/n
Opioid Use and Overdose Framework progress update: https://novascotia.ca/opioid/o
Bills tabled in the legislature are available at: https://nslegislature.ca/legis
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New Legislation Standardizes Regulated Bodies for Health Providers, Improves Protections for Patients
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NOTE: A list of legislation that will be replaced by the Regulated Health Professions Act follows this release.
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The Province is creating consistency across healthcare professions in Nova Scotia and making it easier to respond to future changes in their fields.
The Regulated Health Professions Act, introduced today, October 12, will eventually replace 21 acts currently in place for self-regulated healthcare professions. The Naturopathic Doctors Act and the Medical Professional Corporations Act will be repealed.
“This legislation will better protect patients and allow these professions to quickly and efficiently update their rules and address issues in the future,” said Health and Wellness Minister Michelle Thomspon. “We will work closely with healthcare providers over the next two years to establish their individual regulations under the new act.”
The new act provides a foundation for each profession by standardizing rules and processes. Each profession will continue to have its own regulations that address the unique requirements of their fields in areas such as scope of practice, entry to practice, and licence categories.
Once passed, work will begin in phases with each regulatory body to develop specific regulations for their profession. The first group is expected to be completed by winter 2024, with all 21 acts replaced by the end of 2026.
This legislation brings Nova Scotia in line with most other provinces in Canada, which have already adopted similar legislation for regulated health professions.
Quick Facts:
— seven other Canadian provinces have similar overarching legislation that governs self-regulated healthcare professions
— this act addresses recommendations from the Mass Casualty Commission by supporting smaller regulatory bodies to amalgamate to share resources, improve oversight and update mandates to proactively address misconduct
Additional Resources:
Bills tabled in the legislature are available at: https://nslegislature.ca/legis
Legislation to be replaced:
— Audiologists and Speech-Language Pathologists Act
— Chiropractic Act
— Counselling Therapists Act
— Dental Act
— Dental Hygienists Act
— Dental Technicians Act
— Denturists Act
— Dietitians Act
— Dispensing Opticians Act
— Medical Act
— Medical Laboratory Technology Act
— Medical Professional Corporations Act
— Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy Professionals Act — Midwifery Act
— Naturopathic Doctors Act
— Nursing Act
— Occupational Therapists Act
— Optometry Act
— Paramedics Act
— Pharmacy Act
— Physiotherapy Act
— Psychologists Act
— Respiratory Therapists Act
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