Beyond the Valley will host Victoria’s first pill testing trial.
The pill testing – also known as drug checking – trial is a sensible measure adopted by the Victorian government to keep the 1 in 3 young people who try illicit drugs* safer and more informed.
A fixed site drug checking service will open in mid-2025 at a inner Melbourne location near nightlife and transport, accessible to the 1 in 6 Victorians, of all ages and backgrounds, who use illicit drugs*.
The service will allow Victorians to learn the makeup of pills, capsules, powders, crystals, or liquids, identifying potentially harmful substances including synthetic opioids like fentanyl and nitazenes.
Information provided by the drug checking service will be delivered by health professionals and trained peer workers, who can provide users with confidential support, education and referrals.
The $4 million dollar implementation trial will be used to identify what model works best for Victorians.
The decision to trial drug checking in Victoria is supported by the Australian Medical Association and follows calls from 78 leading health and alcohol and other drug organisations last year urging the government to follow the recommendations from the Victorian Coroners Court after a series of overdoses.
The passing of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment (Pill Testing) Bill 2024, also makes Victoria the first jurisdiction in Australia to have dedicated legislation to support pill testing.
Beyond the Valley is a music festival held over New Year’s Eve in south-western Victoria.
Roughly 35,000 people are expected to attend the 18+ festival, a majority of whom will be under 30. Six youth support and health groups will staff the pop-up pill testing centre and drug information hub.
It will take roughly 15 minutes for drugs to be tested and up to 200 samples can be tested per day. Drug analysis, usually in the form of pills or powders, is used to identify harmful or unexpected ingredients.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan told TDA she was previously sceptical about the effectiveness of pill testing.
However, Allan said since “listening to parents of kids who had either a really terrible experience or kids who’d lost their mates… my perspectives have changed”.
“Young people are smart, they just want the information and we’ve got to give it to them.
“And if we’ve got the opportunity to give them that information and do it in a way that might save a life, then it’s absolutely worth doing.”
- Posted by andyturbro
- December 4, 2024
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