VANCOUVER - Health officials across Canada are urging jurisdictions to collaborate in tackling the problem of illicit fentanyl that's been linked to a spike in the number of deaths.
The Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse has released a bulletin saying the drug was involved in the deaths of at least 655 people across the country between 2009 and 2014.
The bulletin says toxicology tests found the presence of fentanyl in more than 1,000 deaths from drug poisoning, with more than half of them in the latter two years.
British Columbia's deputy provincial health officer Doctor Bonnie Henry is calling for a national co-ordinated approach alongside the centre's bulletin.
She says the illicit drug has been smuggled from overseas and has spread to streets across Canada.
The bulletin says fentanyl-involved deaths have increased markedly in B.C., Alberta, Quebec and Ontario, but that its own count may still be an underestimate.
