A new study reveals a connection between poverty and opioid-related hospitalization, emergency department visits and deaths in Canada. From 2000 to 2017, Canada's poorest residents were 3.8 times more likely to die of opioid-related causes than Canada's richest residents. 

The study by University of Waterloo researchers is the first to examine the connection between socioeconomic status and opioid incidents at the national level in Canada and to explore the trend over nearly two decades. Researchers used three comprehensive national databases and census data to determine the correlation between areas' income levels and opioid-related health issues.

"Opioid-related harms are at a crisis level in Canada," said Wasem Alsabbagh, a pharmacy professor at Waterloo and lead author of the study. "Opioid-related hospitalizations in Canada have increased by more than 50 per cent from 2007 to 2017. In Ontario, emergency department visits more than doubled. We explored the trends between socioeconomic status and opioid harms so that we can better understand how to address the opioid crisis."

Read the full story on the Waterloo News website.