You only have a problem if you know you have a problem. That's my first response. The B.C. Coroners Service has adopted a fairly risk-tolerant approach to reporting this data. We get the data within 48 to 72 hours, and we are reporting these deaths monthly. You will not see that across the other provinces or territories. They do not collect the information the same, and if they do, they're not reporting it the same. The surveillance we're doing is letting us know there's a problem. We may find that out in other parts of the country months or years from now, when the data is rolled out.
In terms of the increasing number of deaths we're seeing, fentanyl is driving that hugely. I would say, because we are on the coast, and a great deal of this product is coming from China, that it's hitting our ports and moving into our communities that way. I think that's also why you see it in B.C. and Alberta.
If I may, I want to mention something else. You talked about treatment a few minutes ago. I didn't want to leave that, because I do want to advocate for treatment. We see, from the families we talk to who have lost their loved ones, that they banged their heads against brick walls for months, if not years, trying to get appropriate treatment for their loved ones. Sean may be able to talk about this better than I can, but there is a time when someone who is using wants treatment, wants to get off. That window is small. If that treatment is not there when they are ready for it, then they will go back and they will die, or they will continue to use. The window is lost.
So you're absolutely right that treatment is a critical piece of this. It has to be available for people and it has to be at no cost. We also know that families have spent tens of thousands of dollars, if not hundreds of thousands, trying to access treatment for their loved ones. Not everybody has that kind of money, so that's a very good point.