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The first full year of official data
The NSW VAD Board released its Annual Report for the year ending 30 June 2025 on Friday 28 November – coinciding with the second anniversary of the commencement of voluntary assisted dying in our state.
The Report confirms what we have been hearing from our members and supporters and what we’ve experienced ourselves through our volunteer witnessing program which has assisted well over 200 people with their VAD applications.
The VAD regime is operating as expected, consistently with the safeguards in the law, and giving dying people the choice to die quickly and peacefully on their own terms.
We continue to hear incredibly moving stories from friends and family of those who have died using VAD. They describe the relief that having control over their death gave their loved ones. They have also been so grateful for the care and compassion shown by the healthcare workers who supported them through the process – the NSW Health Care Navigators, VAD doctors and nurse practitioners and the pharmacists who organise and deliver the medications.
NSW VAD Board Report – key statistics for year ending 30 June 2025
There are no real surprises in the data which are in line with expectations and consistent with other states.
There were 1028 VAD deaths during the year. This is roughly 1.7% of total deaths in NSW for the same period (although official data is not yet available).
There were 2295 first requests for VAD and 2146 first assessments were undertaken. When compared with the previous reporting period, the monthly requests and first assessments increased by 18% and 26% respectively.
The data shows that those seeking access to VAD are more likely to be:
- Male – 54%
- aged in mid 70s
- living in a major city – 58.5%
- suffering from cancer – 71.4%
- receiving palliative care – 87.6%
- choosing practitioner administration of the VAD substance – 81.6%
We are very pleased with the level of detail in the Report, particularly the geographic breakdown and data on palliative care which demolishes the claims of VAD opponents that people are seeking VAD because they are unable to access palliative care.
The higher proportion of men accessing VAD (both in NSW and other states) is of particular interest given that demographic data shows there are more women aged 70+ across the country.
Read the full report here: NSW VAD Board Report 2023-2024
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