[Euthanasia in Australia #1] Current State of the System

[Euthanasia in Australia]

1. Overview of the system and legal situation

Like the United States, Australia's assisted dying (VAD) system is highly dependent on state autonomy, and there is no unified system at the national level.

However, euthanasia is now legal in all states except for the Northern Territory , and legalization is spreading across a wide range of areas.

*In Australia, this system is not called "Euthanasia" but is called "VAD (Voluntary Assisted Dying)" .

(English translation)

2. History and timeline of the introduction of the system

The movement towards legalizing the VAD system began around 2015 when national debate began to gain momentum.

Victoria was the pioneer in turning this discussion into a system , with a bill passed by the state parliament in 2017 and the service beginning operations in 2019 .

Following the implementation in Victoria, VAD systems were steadily introduced in other states across the country.

It is written in a way that is easy for the general public to understand, so please take a look.

www.legislation.vic.gov.au

Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2017

3. Latest trends and summary report

In a recent legal development, the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) passed the Euthanasia Bill on June 5, 2024, with the service scheduled to begin operation in November 2025 (Update: The service has already begun operation without any problems) .

Furthermore, on August 12, 2024, the Australian Minister of Health (equivalent to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare in Japan) publicly released a comprehensive report titled "State of VAD," which provides a detailed summary of the implementation status of VAD to date. This report is considered an important reference for the future operation of the system.

https://assets.nationbuilder.com/gogentleaustralia/pages/3038/attachments/original/1723682650/GGA_StateOfVAD_Report_2024_DIGITAL_Aug24.pdf?1723682650

I will go into more detail on this in a separate post, but for the general public, it is sufficient to understand the following:

4. Main Eligibility Criteria *Example from Victoria

・Be 18 years of age or older.

be an Australian citizen or permanent resident and ordinarily reside in Victoria and have been so for at least 12 months at the time of your first application;

-Having decision-making capacity regarding VAD.

- Have been diagnosed with an incurable, progressive, and fatal disease, illness, or medical condition.

The disease is expected to result in death within a few weeks to a few months, up to six months , or up to 12 months in the case of neurodegenerative diseases . Non-terminal conditions are not eligible.

The illness is causing suffering that the person considers intolerable and that cannot be alleviated in an acceptable way.

- A person cannot qualify for VAD solely on the basis of a mental illness or disability.

*Neurodegenerative diseases:

ALS, Parkinson's disease, spinocerebellar degeneration, multiple system atrophy, multiple sclerosis, Huntington's disease, etc.

5. Specific examples of implementation status

Specific data examples regarding the number of cases in which VAD was actually applied.

• Victoria case: In Victoria, where legalization was the earliest, 331 people applied for VAD in the two years from its implementation in June 2019 to June 2021, of which 224 actually chose VAD and underwent it.

Queensland case: In Queensland, where the service began on January 1, 2023, 591 people applied in the first six months of implementation, and 562 were assessed as eligible. Of these, 338 patients were provided with drugs, and 245 died after taking them .

6. Evaluation of the system and historical background

There has been criticism of Australia's VAD system, with calls for the procedures from application to implementation to be simplified , and the eligibility criteria are strict. However, the system is currently evaluated as functioning reasonably well.

Although there are many areas of dissatisfaction and room for improvement with the VAD system, the country's careful, steady, and prudent approach to avoid problems is highly praised, and this is an important example for Japan to emulate.

In particular, the contrast with Japan's lack of initiative to take the first step is clear , as it has merely expressed its "anxiety."

In addition, the Northern Territory, where VAD is not currently in place, has a unique history in that the world's first euthanasia bill was passed quite some time ago in 1995, but it was invalidated just one year after the service began in July 1996 .

This area is also known for its deep connection to the euthanasia machine "Sarco." We will explain this in a separate article.