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(NSW) Remove State Residency Requirements for Voluntary Assisted Dying in New South Wales

Updated: Jan 14


Reported by: Christopher Noonan

Publish date: 26 Aug 2024








Problem Identification: 

To be eligible to receive Voluntary Assisted Dying (VAD) in New South Wales, one must have been ordinarily resident in the state for at least 12 months, or be granted an exemption. 

 

The New South  Wales Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2022 states that a patient is only eligible for VAD if, ‘the person has been ordinarily resident in New South Wales for a period of at least 12 months,’ but that a person, ‘may apply to the Board for an exemption’.


This requirement constitutes further administrative barriers for those patients hoping to receive VAD.


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: 

  1. 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 

  2. 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

  3. 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: 

John’s Story: John was 73 when he was diagnosed with late-stage lung cancer in New South Wales. His condition progressed quickly, and he soon found himself with intolerable suffering that pain medications were unable to relieve. Doctors told John that he had less than six months to live, and that his suffering would only get worse. John felt passionately that he should have the autonomy to decide how his life should end, and asked his doctor to help him apply for Voluntary Assisted Dying. Part of this application process involved proving that John had been ordinarily resident in New South Wales for the last 12 months. Because John did not have a fixed place of residence, this proved to be especially difficult. Quickly, John became too ill to continue with the application process, and died in pain without having received VAD. This painful, undignified death could have been avoided if the application process for VAD was quicker, and if John was not required to prove his state-residency. 



Reference list (name, date): 

  1. 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

  2. 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

  3. First request patient information guide Voluntary assisted dying. (n.d.). https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/voluntary-assisted-dying/Publications/first-request-patient-guide.pdf

  4. Go Gentle Australia. (2024). Submission to the Victorian review of the operation of the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2017.https://assets.nationbuilder.com/gogentleaustralia/pages/3000/attachments/original/1708908681/Final_-_GGA_submission_to_Vic_Review_-_Feb23.pdf?1708908681

  5. 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).

  6. 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

  7. May, N., & Luca Ittimani. (2024, August 11). Too complex, too late: the guardrails acting as roadblocks to voluntary assisted dying across Australia. The Guardian; The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/article/2024/aug/12/too-complex-too-late-the-guardrails-acting-as-roadblocks-to-voluntary-assisted-dying-across-australia

  8. NSW Voluntary Assisted Dying Board - Voluntary assisted dying. (2024). Nsw.gov.au. https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/voluntary-assisted-dying/Pages/board.aspx#:~:text=seekers%20and%20refugees.-

  9. 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 

  10. Voluntary assisted dying exemptions. (2021). Qld.gov.au. https://www.qld.gov.au/health/support/voluntary-assisted-dying/explained/exemptions

  11. 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.  

  12. Voluntary Assisted Dying Act, 2022 (NSW). 

  13. 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

  14. 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 

  15. Voluntary Assisted Dying Review Board. (2020). Report of operations. Safer Care Victoria .

  16. 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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