Compassion Club Founders Convicted for Saving Lives as Experts Warned Government to Expand Safe Drug Supply

In November 2025, the Canadian government's inaction on expanding safe drug supply programs has come under scrutiny as the opioid overdose crisis continues to claim lives across the country. Experts had repeatedly advised Health Canada to support a greater range of safe and regulated drugs, including prescription opioids and stimulants, to prevent overdoses. However, the government's funding for safe supply programs ended in March 2025, and it no longer has a dedicated Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions.

The founders of the Drug User Liberation Front (DULF) compassion club in Vancouver were recently found guilty of drug trafficking for selling uncontaminated drugs to their members. Despite having the support of local authorities and exemptions to federal drug laws, the club was shut down, leaving addicts like TJ Felix without access to a safe supply. Felix, who had stabilized while using the club's services, was forced to turn to deadly fentanyl, overdosing at least once a day after it closed.

Experts had warned that the government's safe supply programs, which primarily provided hydromorphone tablets, were not strong enough to match the potent street drugs laced with fentanyl that people were used to. The government has not made public the advice from its own expert committee, which called for expanding safe supply to include a greater range of drugs. As the opioid crisis continues to devastate communities across Canada, the government's failure to heed the experts' warnings has left many addicts struggling to survive.