Euthanasia Qld: Andrew Denton warns of regional disadvantage

Media personality and euthanasia advocate Andrew Denton has warned of an uneven playing field under Queensland’s euthanasia laws.

High-profile TV presenter Andrew Denton says the State Government needs to clarify what doctors can and can’t do when regional Queenslanders want to access voluntary assisted dying if the proposed laws pass, amid concerns residents could be penalised due to a “postcode lottery”.

The euthanasia advocate said telehealth would clearly play a role in delivering VAD if the laws passed, and that guidance must be sought from the Commonwealth’s Director of Public Prosecutions.

Under the Commonwealth’s criminal code, it is illegal to use a phone or email to publish or distribute material that counsels or incites committing or attempting to commit suicide.

Andrew Denton

“So there’s only a political solution to this I believe as more states legalise VAD that ultimately a combined effort of the health ministers and possibly the premiers of those states may lead to change, but in the interim … unless the state is willing to back a doctor in a court case and I’m not sure any doctor wishes to go through that, I think the only likely way to address it is to petition the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions to provide guidance as they have in England as to what constitutes an offence, and what doesn’t,” Mr Denton told a parliamentary hearing into Queensland’s proposed laws yesterday.

“There is clearly a role for Telehealth as we have discovered throughout Covid in all manner of consultations, as there is with VAD.”

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk wrote to Prime Minister Scott Morrison earlier this year, requesting the Code be amended to ensure equity across the decentralised state.

Her office yesterday confirmed a letter had been received but did not reveal what it said.

However in May, a spokesman for federal Attorney-General Michaelia Cash said the government had “no plans” to change the code.

Voluntary assisted dying advocate Andrew Denton at a vigil in Adelaide in May

Health Consumers Queensland CEO Melissa Fox said she didn’t want to see Queenslanders living in regional and remote areas suffer because of a “postcode lottery”.

“It’s also important, with access particularly for rural and remote that the Commonwealth rules around telehealth are revised and changed so that they are not penalised due to a postcode lottery to not be able to access important conversations with healthcare professionals via telehealth,” she said.

The issue of institutional objection also dominated yesterday’s hearing, with Reverend Andrew Gunton, moderator of the Uniting Church in Queensland, saying entities should not have to provide VAD if they didn’t want to.

However he said in cases where a person could not be transferred because of their health, the church would support a “compassionate position” where the entity would allow self or practitioner administration.

He also recommended “targeted consultation” with First Nations communities, because the church believed their “voice has been silent” throughout this consultation.

The proposed laws are set to be debated in September this year.