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CBC
41 minutes ago
- CBC
Police investigating extortion links after latest targeted shooting at Surrey business
An early morning shooting at a Surrey business is being investigated by police. As Sohrab Sandhu reports, the incident is the latest in a number of shootings in Surrey, several of which are being investigated for extortion links.
CBC
2 hours ago
- Health
- CBC
Federal court rules Health Canada decision to block experiential psilocybin training was unreasonable
Social Sharing The Federal Court of Appeal has ruled that Health Canada's refusal to allow exemptions for health-care workers to use psilocybin as part of their experiential training was unreasonable. Wednesday's decision was the result of an appeal of a 2022 judicial review application in a case involving 96 health-care practitioners who sought an exemption to legally use dried hallucinogenic mushrooms as part of what is known as experiential training. The initial application for exemption was filed under the name of Jeff Toth, a Nova Scotia nurse practitioner. Health Canada's refusal of the health-care workers' requests for exemptions has been sent back to Health Minister Marjorie Michel for redetermination. The mushrooms, commonly called magic mushrooms, contain psychoactive substances that are only legal for use in Canada if an exemption is granted under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA). Such exemptions are reserved for psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy, which involves medically supervised consumption of the substance for the treatment of serious medical conditions including end-of-life distress or treatment-resistant depression. Late Wednesday, the federal court ruled that Health Canada's reasons for refusing to grant exemptions to the 96 health workers training to administer psilocybin were too arbitrary. Refusal of exemptions harms patients: advocate John Gilchrist, communications director for TheraPsil, a Canadian non-profit organization that advocates for legal access to psychedelic therapy, was "elated" with this week's decision, which he called a "very long time coming." Gilchrist hopes this leads the current health minister to open up access to therapies by training more professionals who can help treat patients with debilitating migraines or depression. He says Health Canada's refusal to grant the exemptions is "harming health-care professionals and, very importantly, patients who are the most vulnerable in Canada." The Federal Court of Appeal's decision noted that Health Canada changed its position on psilocybin exemptions between 2020 and 2022 with no clear explanation. In 2020, then Health Minister Patty Hajdu granted exemptions to 19 health-care practitioners. This was reversed in 2022 under Carolyn Bennett, the then minister of mental health and addictions and the associate minister of health. "Health Canada is not aware of peer-reviewed clinical evidence to demonstrate that health-care professionals need to take a psychedelic drug in order to appreciate what the patient experiences," the ministry is quoted as saying in the federal court decision this week. But Federal Court of Appeal Justice Douglas Rennie wrote in his decision Wednesday that "nearly identical exemption requests" were granted in one case and denied arbitrarily in the other. "The Minister can't make such a significant and abrupt shift without explanation," he wrote. WATCH | Psychotherapist explains what a medical magic mushroom trip will look like: What a magic mushroom trip will look like for medical participants 1 year ago Duration 1:32 Health Canada has approved a study with 20 Londoners who suffer from PTSD to experience therapy under the influence of psilocybin, the active ingredient in psychedelic mushrooms. Psychotherapist Jared Dalton will oversee the therapy. He explains how it will work. Wins will open access to treatments: lawyer Ottawa lawyer Nicholas Pope says this is the latest in legal wins that will help open up access to psychedelic treatments. Pope, lawyer for the appellants, said the health-care workers were approved in 2020, then denied based on a lack of scientific evidence of efficacy. "Health Canada didn't demand that level of evidence in 2020 and now is demanding it," he said. In May 2024, a Calgary man named Jody Lance who suffers debilitating cluster headaches was the first to win a Federal Court battle forcing Health Canada to reconsider his bid for legal access to psilocybin to treat his extreme pain. His case was withdrawn after he got approval for an exemption this year. Requests to access controlled substances in special medical circumstances are filed through Health Canada's Special Access Program (SAP). Lance's initial application under the SAP to help treat his pain was denied due to lack of research into the efficacy of psilocybin to treat cluster headaches. Canadians have had limited legal access to psilocybin under the SAP since 2022. Health Canada approved 56 SAP requests in 2022, 106 in 2023 and 85 as of October 2024.
CBC
2 hours ago
- Business
- CBC
Should Canada loosen rules around foreign ownership of its airlines?
The Competition Bureau is calling for changes to improve the competitive landscape in Canada's airline industry, including loosening rules that limit foreign ownership of Canadian airlines. But would it work? We speak with two aviation experts with differing opinions on the issue.
CBC
2 hours ago
- Sport
- CBC
Siakam posts double-double as Pacers pound Thunder to force decisive Game 7 in NBA Finals
Obi Toppin scored 20 points, Andrew Nembhard added 17 and the resilient Indiana Pacers sent the NBA Finals to a winner-take-all Game 7 by rolling past the Oklahoma City Thunder 108-91 on Thursday night. Pascal Siakam had 16 points and 13 rebounds for Indiana, while Tyrese Haliburton — playing through a strained calf — scored 14 points for the Pacers, who started slowly and then turned things into a blowout. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 21 points for the Thunder, who pulled their starters after getting down by 30 going into the fourth. Jalen Williams added 16. Game 7, the first one in the NBA Finals since 2016, will be Sunday night in Oklahoma City. Good news for the Thunder: home teams are 15-4 in the ultimate game to decide a title. Bad news for the Thunder: Cleveland won at Golden State in the most recent NBA Finals Game 7 and one of the three other home-team losses was in 1978 — by Seattle, the franchise that would move to Oklahoma City three decades later. Indiana missed its first eight shots and got down 10-2. The arena, roaring just a few minutes before at the start, quieted quickly. Hall of Famer Reggie Miller, sitting courtside in a Jalen Rose Pacers jersey, was pacing, kneeling, generally acting more nervous than he ever seemed as a player. No need. After the slow start, the Pacers outscored the Thunder 68-32 over the next 24 minutes. An Indiana team that hadn't led by more than 10 points at any time in the first five games — and that double-digit lead was brief — led by 28 early in the third quarter. The margin eventually got to 31, which was Oklahoma City's second-biggest deficit of the season. WATCH | 4 Canadian players to watch in the NBA Finals: 4 Canadian basketball stars you can cheer for in the NBA Finals 15 days ago Duration 5:20 The worst also came in these playoffs: a 45-point hole against Minnesota in the Western Conference finals. The Thunder came back to win that series, obviously, and now will need that bounce-back ability one more time. The Thunder, desperate for a spark, put Alex Caruso in the starting lineup in place of Isaiah Hartenstein to open the second half. There was no spark. In fact, there was nothing whatsoever — neither team scored in the first 3:53 after halftime, the sides combining to miss their first 13 shots of the third quarter. TJ McConnell, the spark off the bench again, finished with 12 points, nine rebounds and six assists for Indiana.
CBC
2 hours ago
- Health
- CBC
Vancouver Island family heartbroken as B.C. stops funding $1M drug for girl with terminal condition
A Vancouver Island family is in shock after learning the British Columbia government will stop funding an extremely expensive medication their young daughter needs for a rare genetic condition. Nine-year-old Charleigh Pollock is the only person in B.C. with Batten disease, or neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis type 2 (CLN2). It's a rare and terminal genetic disorder that causes multiple seizures daily, eventually causing brain damage. Pollock's mother, Jori Fales, said the family is still processing the news, announced Wednesday, that the B.C. government will pull funding for Pollock's access to Brineura, a $1-million-per-year medication which is given through an infusion of fluid to the brain to slow the progression of CLN2. "Emotions have gone from sheer heartbreak to anger to sadness; it's just been a roller-coaster the last 24 hours," Fales said. Thursday marked Pollock's last infusion of Brineura. Fales called the government's decision to pull funding with one day's notice before the last infusion "a little heartless." She said her daughter has been let down. "At the end of the day, it should have always been the decision of her medical care team, and her family and Charleigh. And none of that has happened here." On Thursday, B.C. Minister of Health Josie Osborne said it was a tough decision to end the funding. She said the cost of the medication had nothing to do with the reason the funding was pulled, but that it was determined Pollock's condition had deteriorated to the point where she met "discontinuation criteria" for Brineura. "Clinical evidence shows that once a patient has declined in their motor and language functions by a certain amount, Brineura no longer has the benefit of slowing down the progression of the disease, although patients can continue to live on into mid-adolescence," Osborne said. Fales denied that her daughter's condition has worsened. "Charleigh is not in advanced progression of her disease. This is simply not true," she said. Dr. Ineka Whiteman, the head of research and medical affairs for the Batten Disease Support and Research Association U.S. and Australia and head of the Batten Disease Global Research Initiative, called the B.C. government's decision "appalling." She expressed frustration with the provincial government's emphasis on criteria to discontinue the medicine, which she said is based on old clinical trials. She added other families around the world are becoming concerned their access to the medication may also be reconsidered. "This is not just about a single child. This is really setting a very, very dangerous precedent." Fales said she plans to share her daughter's journey and advocate for others dealing with the disease.
