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Reported by: Christopher Noonan
Publish date: 2/09/24
Problem Identification:
To be eligible to receive Voluntary Assisted Dying (VAD) in Tasmania (TAS), one must have been ordinarily resident in the state for at least 12 months.
Tasmania’s End-of-Life Choices (Voluntary Assisted Dying) Act 2021 states that a patient is eligible for VAD only if, ‘the person has been ordinarily resident in Tasmania for at least 12 continuous months immediately before the person makes the relevant first request.’
This means that patients who have been ordinarily resident in TAS for less than 12 months, and who are unable to return to their home-state, cannot receive VAD. It also places an additional administrative burden on patients in TAS to prove their residency.
Context:
Solution Identification:
Advice:
Download the 1-page policy brief PDF here:
If your organisation would like to add your support to this paper please email Info@foreaustralia.com.
If you have any ammendment suggestions please reach out to Info@foreaustralia.com
Endorsed by:
Dr Katrine Del Villar
Public Support:
Katherine Waller
Dr Aidan Ricciardo
Dying with Dignity Victoria
Go Gentle Australia
Voluntary Assisted Dying Australia and New Zealand
Where to go to learn more:
Waller, K., Del Villar, K., Willmott, L. and White, B.P., 2023. Voluntary assisted dying in Australia: a comparative and critical analysis of state laws. https://www.unswlawjournal.unsw.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Issue-464-10-Waller-et-al.pdf
Go Gentle Australia, Submission to the Centre For Evaluation and Research Evidence at the Victorian Department of Health (Feb 2024). https://assets.nationbuilder.com/gogentleaustralia/pages/3000/attachments/original/1708908681/Final_-_GGA_submission_to_Vic_Review_-_Feb23.pdf?1708908681
Keane Bourke, “Voluntary assisted dying almost universally available in Australia, but residency requirements block some from accessing it” (Jul 2024). https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-07-12/residency-requirements-blocking-access-to-vad/104050352
Lived Experience:
Marion’s Story: Marion lived in Western Australia for most of her life and then retired to Tasmania. While visiting WA, she was diagnosed with incurable lung cancer. She became too ill to travel back to Tasmania, and wanted to spend her final days with her family. Because she had not been living in Western Australia for 12 months, she was not eligible for VAD (even though she likely would have been if she could get back to Tasmania). This meant that she did not have autonomy during her final days alive, which led to devastating mental health issues. ‘It was extremely harrowing, emotionally distressing and left me feeling very angry which has resulted in me suffering anxiety attacks for which I am now under medication’, she told the ABC through her lawyer. ‘My life should not be left in the hands of legislators as this decision should be entirely mine.’
Reference list (name, date):
Cohen, I. G., Adashi, E. Y., & Pope, T. M. (2022). Traveling Across States for Prohibited Treatments: Medical Aid in Dying and Looming Battles Over Abortion. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 38. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-022-07898-3
Directorate, J. and C. S. (2023, February 7). Voluntary assisted dying laws in the ACT. Www.justice.act.gov.au. https://www.justice.act.gov.au/justice-programs-and-initiatives/voluntary-assisted-dying-laws-in-the-act
End-of-Life Choices (Voluntary Assisted Dying) Act, 2021 (TAS).
Go Gentle Australia. (2024). Submission to the Victorian review of the operation of the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2017.
K, W., K, D. V., L, W., & BP, W. (2023). Voluntary assisted dying in Australia: a comparative and critical analysis of state laws. UNSW Law Journal , 46(4).
Keane, B. (2024, July 11). Voluntary assisted dying almost universally available in Australia, but residency requirements block some from accessing it. ABC News. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-07-12/residency-requirements-blocking-access-to-vad/104050352
Submission to the Centre for Evaluation and Research Evidence at the Victorian Department of Health. (2024). Dying with Dignity Victoria . https://www.dwdv.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/DWDV-submission-to-Victorian-VAD-5-Year-Review.pdf
Vermont Ethics Network (n. d.). Medical Aid in Dying, Act 39: Patient Choice and Control at the End of Life. www.vtethicsnetwork.org https://vtethicsnetwork.org/palliative-and-end-of-life-care/medical-aid-in-dying-act-39#:~:text=In%20May%20of%202023%2C%20Vermont,in%20which%20they%20legally%20reside.
Voluntary assisted dying (VAD) in the Northern Territory | Have Your Say Northern Territory. (n.d.). Haveyoursay.nt.gov.au. https://haveyoursay.nt.gov.au/vad
Voluntary Assisted Dying Australia and New Zealand. (2024). Submission to Review of the operation of the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2017 (Victoria). https://www.vadanz.com.au/content/uploads/VIC-VAD-Review-VADANZ-submission.pdf
Voluntary Assisted Dying Review Board. (2020). Report of operations. Safer Care Victoria .
White, B., Jeanneret, R., Close, E., & Willmott, L. (2023). Access to voluntary assisted dying in Victoria: a qualitative study of family caregivers’ perceptions of barriers and facilitators. The Medical Journal of Australia, 219(5). https://doi.org/10.5694/mja2.52004
Conflict of interest / acknowledgment statement:
N/a
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