Victoria has become the first jurisdiction in the country to pass legislation to support pill testing.
The new law will allow the Victorian government to trial drug-checking services at festivals and other events across the state this summer.
“These changes don’t make drugs legal, but by having pill testing services in place, we can help to keep more Victorians safe during busy summer festival seasons,” minister for mental health Ingrid Stitt said.
The Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment (Pill Testing) Bill 2024 allows both fixed and mobile pill-testing services to operate in Victoria – meaning nobody will be breaking the law by operating or using drug-checking services.
The mobile service will be active in 10 music festivals and events throughout the 18-month implementation trial period. A fixed drug-checking site in an inner-Melbourne location close to nightlife will also begin operating mid-next year.
People using the services will be able to get their drugs tested to identify any harmful chemicals that may be present. Trained peer workers and technical experts will also provide personalised and confidential health information to help people make informed decisions.
“The passing of this nation-leading legislation paves the way for our implementation trial to begin – this will allow us to explore what model works best because there’s plenty of evidence that pill testing saves lives,” Stitt said. Data obtained during the implementation trial will help inform public health responses and awareness campaigns in the future.
The new legislation also supports increased access to naloxone, the overdose reversal medicine, through 20 vending machines across Victoria by mid-2025.
“No drug is ever truly safe but with this new legislation Victorians can be better informed about their drug use,” Stitt said.
Speaking to Government News when the bill was first introduced to parliament, epidemiologist and public health practitioner Professor Nick Crofts said framing the policy as an implementation trial is significant.
“It’s a trial of how the service will run not a trial of whether the policy is effective – that’s really positive. So we know that drug-checking services are here to stay in Victoria, at least under this government.”
Organisations such as Harm Reduction Australia have long called for drug checking to become government policy. Crofts – an advocate for Harm Reduction Australia – told GN the organisation will be pushing for the service to continue once the trial has concluded. “We think it’s necessary. The long-term dream would be for drug-checking services to be accessible for all Victorians near where they live.”
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