Voluntary assisted dying laws have been passed in New South Wales Parliament’s upper house after months of setbacks and a long night of debate in the house.
Per The Guardian, the legislation that gives terminally ill patients the right to choose how their lives will end has been hotly debated in NSW parliament since it passed the lower house in November 2021.
Done. Voluntary assisted dying laws pass the nsw_upperhouse.
Final vote 23 – 15.
NSW joins the other states in having these laws. pic.twitter.com/FF1lSmYXSA
— John Graham (@JohnGrahamALP) May 19, 2022
At about 12.30pm Thursday the law was passed through the upper house and will now go through the processes to be made legal in the state.
NSW is the last state in Australia to legalise voluntary assisted dying laws and advocates — led by independent MP Alex Greenwich — have been pushing for it to happen for a while.
Greenwich said this landmark moment signifies the state has “finally passed a threshold of honesty and compassion” and allows all Aussies to have the same access to end-of-care options right across the country.
“Honesty that not all people die well, and compassion that people with advanced and cruel terminal illnesses will have the same end-of-care options as those in every other state,” he said.
Voluntary Assisted Dying has now passed into law in NSW 🙏 pic.twitter.com/z2V5Y5HadP
— Alex Greenwich MP (@AlexGreenwich) May 19, 2022
NSW’s passed laws will allow those with terminal illnesses who will likely die within six months to access voluntary assisted dying options. People with a neurodegenerative condition dealing with “unbearable suffering” will be granted access to end-of-care services at 12 months.
All people wanting to access voluntary assisted dying services must be determined to have the capacity to voluntarily make the decision for themselves without being pressured. All applications must also be determined and assessed by two medical doctors.
