Page 326 - Week 01 - Thursday, 14 February 1991
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this area, has been discussed in this place before, and will be discussed again, I have no doubt, when the Assembly comes to consider the report of the Standing Committee on Social Policy on fluoride. Whatever the merits of the council's work in the area of fluoride, I have to say that its work in the area of drugs and poisons has been important. Its importance for the ACT, of course, is reflected in this legislation - legislation which will mean that the ACT will be among the first jurisdictions to be completely up to date with guidelines laid down by the National Health and Medical Research Council. From being the last in many respects in the past, hopefully now we will have some chance to be the first.
Amendments to the Poisons and Drugs Act of 1978 are designed to safeguard public health by dealing with all poisons which have an impact on health. As members can see by looking through the schedules, there are a great many, and the list grows all the time. The effect of these amendments is to repeal the drug schedules in the Poisons and Drugs Act and to substitute new schedules, and obviously the Drugs of Dependence (Amendment) Bill similarly amends the schedules to that Act.
Mr Stefaniak has indicated that the important role played by medicine in our society requires increasing and vigilant monitoring of the way in which such chemicals and drugs might impact on people who use them. It is obviously important to ensure that we remain informed and that warnings and guidelines for the use of chemicals and drugs are such that individuals are at the least possible risk of suffering injury or harm.
The successful use of pharmaceuticals depends on appropriate access to those pharmaceuticals. The regular revision of drug schedules and legislation such as this not only helps protect the health of the general populace but also allows there to be a control over the access to commonly abused prescription and non-prescription substances. We have to acknowledge the rather alarming tendency towards abuse in our community, particularly by the very young. Where more restrictive scheduling has taken place to help safeguard public health, there are alternative drugs and therapies available. These restricted items would, of course, still be available to the patient if a medical practitioner deems the use of those sorts of drugs necessary.
There are many items involved in this current set of amendments as the last update to the schedules in the ACT was on 21 December 1988. A lot has happened in the two years since the last amendments to this Act occurred. I think, Mr Speaker, that we need to be aware that such amendments will be coming forward on a regular basis, perhaps annually, to ensure that the ACT remains at the forefront in this area. Obviously, with our proximity to New South Wales, there are dangers where different regimes apply in the ACT and New South Wales, and the sooner that
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