Pill testing – it’s a topic that has captured the interest of Australians across the country. And rightly so.

Every time we hear about another young person who has been impacted by drugs at a music festival, we wonder how many more lives need to be harmed before the conversation moves from why we can’t trial pill testing, to how we can. The ATDC believes we should and on the 18 March, the ATDC has organised for Gino Vumbaca of Pill Testing Australia to come to Hobart. Pill Testing Australia is an arm of Harm Reduction Australia, and is the organisation that delivered the pill testing services at the Groovin the Moo festival in Canberra last year. The purpose of Gino’s visit will be to spend time with our festival organisers to talk through the practicalities of how pill testing works and the ATDC will also spend time with Gino to explore the success of the ACT trial. Gino was also a member of the steering committee that oversaw the ACT pill testing trial, and we are grateful to Gino for making the time to travel to Tasmania.

The ATDC supports pill testing based on the evidence of its effectiveness as a harm reduction strategy, and we are calling for the convening of an advisory committee of relevant stakeholders and experts to investigate options for trialling pill testing at Tasmanian music festivals and events. Read our position statement here.

While the opportunity to trial pill testing in Tasmania is not available to us now, we firmly believe that a trial should occur. If and when the opportunity presents itself, we plan to be ready.

Alison Lai
Chief Executive Officer