The Queensland Law Reform Commission's Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill, the first in Australia to address objections by institutions, has been welcomed by Professors Ben White and Lindy Willmott from QUT's Australian Centre for Health Law Research.
With more than 20 years' research in this area, Professors White and Willmott authored the original VAD Bill that the Queensland Parliamentary Health Committee recommended as the basis for law reform in 2020.
The Queensland Law Reform Commissioner drew heavily on this research, referencing the draft legislation as the "White and Willmott Bill".
Professor White said: "The Bill that will be tabled in the Queensland Parliament next week is a very measured VAD law.
"There are some differences from the Victorian legislation based on the evidence about limitations of the law in that State.
"One key difference is that eligibility for voluntary assisted dying under the Queensland Bill is an expectation that a patient will die in 12 months which is a more coherent approach to law reform than in Victoria where it is six months, except for neurodegenerative conditions when it is 12 months."
Professor Willmott said: "The Queensland Bill is the first in Australia to deal with objections by institutions to voluntary assisted dying.
"Victoria, Western Australia and Tasmania all deal only with conscientious objection by an individual health professional.
"But there is evidence in Victoria that institutions are blocking access to voluntary dying so this is an important step forward to ensure eligible patients can access voluntary assisted dying.
"The Queensland Law Reform Commission emphasised that its role is to develop the best possible VAD laws rather than just copy other states. Although there are some improvements in this Bill, it remains a conservative voluntary assisted dying law."
