A dip in opioid prescriptions in Canada 

A new report finds that the number of opioid prescriptions in Canada is decreasing. Canada has also been facing an opioid crisis — some 12,800 people there died of overdoses between January 2016 and March this year. Looking at data from four Canadian provinces between 2013-2018, researchers found that the proportion of people prescribed opioids decreased from around 14% to 12%, which led to 8% fewer people taking the painkillers. Fewer people were also given long-term prescriptions. The proportion of people who began taking opioids during the study period also decreased. At the same time, the percentage of people who stopped taking opioids for a period of six months or longer increased from around 18% to more than 20% in 2017.