Australian Medical Association NSW president Kean-Seng Lim said evidence from other countries showed there was “good reason to support a trial of pill testing with appropriate evaluation”. “Pill testing is not a question of just telling someone a pill is safe or not safe, but using it as an engagement opportunity to provide further advice, education and support,” Dr Lim…

As it prepares for its second pill-testing initiative at Groovin’ The Moo in Canberra this weekend, Pill Testing Australia has launched a fundraising campaign on its website. The initial target is $100,000, to buy a couple of schmick pieces of tech to do the testing (ALPHA II FTIR spectrophotometers), assist with logistics, resources and volunteer travel. […]

“The support from the medical and scientific community for pill testing is pretty much unanimous, no matter what some Australian politicians would have you believe. Over a dozen professional medical bodies, medical, nursing, paramedical and pharmaceutical now stand with us and 20 years of global data shows that shows pill testing reduces drug consumption and reduces harm.” […]

Queensland’s independent body for drugs and ­alcohol has warned that lives could be at risk if the State Government prolongs the rollout of a pill-testing trial. Queensland Network of Alcohol and Other Drugs Agencies chief executive officer Rebecca Lang said pill-testing had the potential to reduce such tragedies. “I don’t know why we wouldn’t dive in and help young people,”…

Instead of trying to stop young people taking drugs, which hasn’t been working very well, Professor Rapee suggests parents, the police and lawmakers try to minimise harm – a major argument for festival pill testing. “A large proportion of overseas trials of pill testing have shown that when you have someone standing in front of you, and especially someone in…

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk will consider the outcomes of the ACT pill testing trial and Health Committee chairman Aaron Harper will travel to the ACT to investigate. When asked whether Mr Harper would look at harm-reduction measures rather than tougher enforcement, Ms Palaszczuk said both responses were being considered. […]

While offering a pill-testing service will never guarantee that there will be no drug-related deaths at Australian music festivals, the international evidence is indisputable and growing that it significantly reduces the risk. And even though the process may seem counter-intuitive to the “just say no” strategies we’re used to (which are failing), it is one that works. […]

It is time for a permanent ACT drug testing site. Evidence shows that accessing drug checking services not only equips people to make informed decisions by providing clarity regarding substance make-up, it connects them with further harm reduction information and support services. If the challenge is to keep our community safe, then this is a test we must not fail.…

As the global prohibition effort enters its second century, we are witnessing two countervailing trends. The very idea of a prohibition regime has reached a crescendo of dead-end violence not just in Afghanistan but recently in Southeast Asia, demonstrating the failure of the drug war’s repression strategy. On the other side of history’s ledger, the harm-reduction movement led by medical practitioners…