Advocates warned people would die. Now we know someone has
When the former Labor government announced a trial of two fixed pill-testing sites in Queensland in 2024, it included an important provision: an independent evaluation after 12 months.
The sites in Bowen Hills and Burleigh Heads opened last year and tested a range of substances – not just recreational drugs such as methamphetamines, cocaine and MDMA, but also commonly prescribed medications, such as Ozempic, valium and ritalin.
When the LNP took office, funding for the sites was axed and they closed in April. But the report from the evaluation, conducted by the University of Queensland at a cost to taxpayers of $453,286, is still relevant.
The terms of the evaluation were to include an analysis of harm-reduction strategies and the development of a framework to monitor the detection of dangerous substances.
The latter point is important. Unlike other states and territories, Queensland doesn't have an overdose monitoring system or a public drug alert network.
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Several times, the pill-testing service filled this gap, including when it detected nitazenes, extremely potent synthetic opioids that are 40 times more powerful than fentanyl. These analogues are increasingly sold as pain meds, but can quickly become fatal.
When the sites closed, Cameron Francis, chief executive of The Loop Australia – the not-for-profit organisation that delivered the pill-testing service – said he feared lives would be lost as a result of the decision. It wasn't an exaggerated warning.
In March, Queensland Health issued a clinical alert after protodesnitazene, a type of nitazene, was detected in a toxicology sample. The alert suggested the drug was mistakenly sold as desmetramadol, a medication used to treat chronic pain.
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