Automated kiosks that dispense harm-reduction supplies on Vancouver Island have been suspended while the Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions conducts a review.

The kiosks, which had been placed at hospitals in Nanaimo, Campbell River and Victoria in the fall of 2023, offered free access to supplies like naloxone, drug-testing strips and safe-sex kits alongside drug paraphernalia like bubble pipes and snorting utensils. 

Premier David Eby ordered a review of the program in late August after G…