10 October 2024
More support for end-of-life care
Labor fought hard for Territory Rights, paving the way for a Voluntary Assisted Dying Scheme to be implemented in the ACT.
When it came for the historic vote in the ACT Legislative Assembly on Voluntary Assisted Dying, the majority of the Canberra Liberals voted against it.
Labor is committed more than ever to protecting this hard-won reform and delivering an effective and accessible model of care in the ACT.
The 2024-25 ACT Budget included $19 million to implement the ACT’s Voluntary Assisted Dying model. This funding will include reimbursement for clinicians to undertake training, the establishment of an Oversight Board and a territory-wide Care Navigator Service.
A re-elected Labor Government will also invest more in palliative care services to ensure those who need it have access to quality end of life healthcare.
In 2020, the ACT Labor Government partnered with Palliative Care ACT to establish Leo’s Place - a respite hub for people with life-limiting illness and their families.
To provide more Canberrans with access to this valued service, a re-elected Labor Government will support the expansion of Leo’s Place. We will fund an additional six beds in the Leo’s Place facility in Garran.
A re-elected Labor Government will also:
- Improve after-hours access to essential medications so people do not suffer great pain and discomfort while waiting for palliative care medicines
- Expand home based palliative care and hospice services at Clare Holland House
- Establish a First Nations end-of-life care service to provide culturally appropriate support to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people nearing end of life
- Deliver a new 12-bed palliative care ward at Canberra Hospital
Labor believes every individual has the right to access compassionate and patient-centred end of life care that suits their individual needs and wants.
We will always invest in our health system so Canberrans can access the right care, in the right place and at the right time.
It’s all part of our progressive, practical and proven plan for Canberra.
Statement ends
Media contact:
Kaarin Dynon 0422 772 215 [email protected]
