Mater Group, Queensland’s biggest private hospital operator, will deny access to elective euthanasia and won’t refer-on patients seeking to end their lives if the right to die is legislated by the next state Parliament. Source: The Australian.
Mater Group chairman Francis Sullivan says it is “not in the mission” of the 10-strong hospital chain to facilitate voluntary assisted dying and it would opt out if Queensland became the third state to embrace it.
Mr Sullivan says Mater respects the dying process but it was not in the organisation’s mission to accelerate or directly intervene to cause death.
Writing for The Australian, Mr Sullivan urges voters to quiz candidates on their position on euthanasia ahead of Saturday fortnight’s state election.
He says Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Liberal National Party leader Deb Frecklington each need to make a “clear statement” on what they would do with draft euthanasia legislation now before the Queensland Law Reform Commission.
Ms Frecklington would not be drawn on whether an LNP government would present a bill to Parliament, saying only that if elected, the LNP it would consider the commission’s report, which is due next March.
Ms Palaszczuk’s office did not respond to questions. She has previously said the death from cancer of her grandfather was horrific, but this did not mean a euthanasia law would be pursued by Labor.
FULL STORY
Queensland election: Hospital chain ‘won’t allow euthanasia’ (By Jamie Walker, The Australian)
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Queensland election: Lessons from Covid must inform euthanasia debate (The Australian)
