In the Australian state of Queensland, 1,082 people died by euthanasia or assisted suicide between July 2025 and June 2026, the highest figure since the legislation came into force in January 2023. The deaths represent approximately 3% of recorded deaths in the state, while the body responsible for overseeing the law’s implementation has recommended opening a public consultation to study possible changes to the access requirements, with an explicit reference to people suffering from dementia.
The data come from the fourth annual report of the Queensland Voluntary Assisted Dying Review Board, published on 30 September and reported by the Australian Catholic newspaper The Catholic Leader on 14 October.
The recommendation comes at a time when the state government is required to review the operation of the legislation after its first three years. However, Health Minister Tim Nicholls stated on 15 October that the government remains committed to not amending the law.
77% of deaths were carried out by healthcare professionals
The report confirms that euthanasia and assisted suicide have reached a new annual high in Queensland. During the 2023-2024 period, 793 deaths were recorded, a figure that rose to 1,072 in 2024-2025 and reached 1,082 in the most recent period analysed.
Although the increase compared with the previous year was only 0.9%, the data show a significant change in the way the procedure is carried out.
Of the 1,082 deaths recorded, 836 corresponded to cases in which a doctor or nurse directly administered the lethal substance, while in the remaining 246 the patient ingested or administered it themselves.
This means that 77% of deaths occurred through direct intervention by a healthcare professional, compared with 73% in the previous period. Compared with 2023-2024, when 532 cases of administration by professionals were recorded, this modality has increased by 57% in two years.
The report also notes that another 805 people died from other causes while they were within the euthanasia application process. Among the circumstances considered by the Board are the decision not to use the lethal substance or the loss of capacity to continue the process due to the progression of the disease.
More than 92% of applicants passed the first assessment
Official figures also show that a large majority of those who began the procedure were deemed eligible in the medical assessments.
Of the 2,256 people who underwent a first assessment, 2,092, equivalent to 92.7%, met the established requirements. In the second assessment, carried out by another authorised doctor, the approval rate reached 98.9%, with 1,963 people deemed eligible.
The legislation requires that the applicant be of legal age, retain decision-making capacity, act voluntarily and suffer from an advanced and progressive disease that is expected to cause death within a maximum of twelve months, in addition to causing suffering that they consider intolerable.
Cancer remained the main diagnosis among those deemed eligible after both assessments, accounting for 77.3% of cases. This was followed by respiratory diseases, at 9%, and neurological disorders, at 6.2%.
More than 500 applicants had not received palliative care
One of the most concerning findings in the report relates to palliative care.
Although 76% of those who underwent a first assessment were receiving or had previously received this type of care, 503 applicants, 22.3% of the total, had not accessed palliative care services at the time of initiating the procedure. In another 39 cases, no information was recorded on this aspect.
The figure has increased compared with the 359 applicants who were in that situation during the 2023-2024 period, representing an increase of nearly 40% in two years.
The report does not determine whether these people had requested palliative care without gaining access, had rejected it, or whether other circumstances explained their situation. Nevertheless, the data highlight that some of those who resort to the euthanasia procedure have not previously received this care.
Geographical distribution also shows differences. 54% of those who requested euthanasia and received a first assessment lived in regional, rural or remote areas, even though almost two-thirds of Queensland’s population live in the main cities.
The Board proposes reviewing access requirements and explicitly mentions dementia
The most sensitive issue in the report appears in its fourth recommendation, which suggests taking advantage of the mandatory review of the law to open a broad consultation on the desirability of modifying the current access criteria.
The Board requests that the Health Minister facilitate a public consultation involving citizens, healthcare professionals and other interested sectors, with the aim of determining whether it is appropriate and feasible to introduce changes.
The document explicitly mentions the expected time until the patient’s death, the criteria for medical prognosis and their implications for people living with dementia or other diseases.
Currently, the law requires that the applicant retain decision-making capacity and that their illness is expected to cause death within twelve months. These requirements pose particular difficulties in neurodegenerative diseases that can evolve over years and progressively affect cognitive faculties.
The Board does not directly propose removing these limits or automatically authorising euthanasia in cases of dementia, but it does recommend that their implications be examined during the legislative review.
The Government states it will not amend the legislation
The Board’s proposal contrasts with the position expressed by the Queensland Government.
On 15 October, during a session of the state Parliament, Health Minister Tim Nicholls responded to a question about the timetable for reviewing the law and stated that the government would fulfil the obligations set out in the legislation.
However, he insisted that the government maintains the commitment made before the elections not to introduce changes to the current rules on voluntary assisted dying.
“I want to emphasise that our commitment to the people of Queensland before the elections was that there would be no changes to the laws on voluntary assisted dying, and that commitment remains,” the minister said, according to the transcript released on 16 October by MP Sandy Bolton.
The legislation requires the minister to review its effectiveness once three years have passed since it came into force, explicitly including the access criteria. However, carrying out that review does not imply that the recommendations of the supervisory body must become legal reforms.
While this debate continues, official figures show that euthanasia has become established as a practice that already accounts for around 3% of deaths in Queensland, just three and a half years after its legalisation.
The discussion on a possible modification of the requirements once again places the protection of the most vulnerable patients, particularly those with cognitive impairment, and the need to guarantee palliative care and support before induced death is presented as a response to suffering, at the centre of attention.
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