In short:
From October, a pill testing service will be made available at up to 15 music festivals per year in NSW.
In announcing the permanent service Health Minister Ryan Park says it is “not a silver bullet” and will not endorse drug use.
The move was praised by Jennie Ross-King whose daughter Alex died of an MDMA overdose at a Sydney festival in 2019.
Pill testing will be made permanent in New South Wales after a trial at music festivals was linked to a decrease in drug-related hospitalisations.
The Minns government will provide a drug checking service at up to 15 festivals per year, beginning in October.
Health Minister Ryan Park said the program was not a silver bullet but would ultimately save lives.
“There will always be risks involved when consuming these substances, and this initiative does not endorse drug use,” Mr Park said.
“Drug checking at music festivals can reduce harms associated with drug use.”
Ryan Park says the service will ultimately save lives. (ABC News)
The trial, recommended by the drug summit in December 2024, ran for one year from March 2025.
NSW Health carried out testing at 12 festivals, with more than 1,800 people visiting the service and almost 1,500 samples analysed.
An evaluation by the University of Sydney found the drug checking service was associated with reduced rates of drug-related hospital presentations.
Inside the tents a small sample is taken from the presented drug and tested for life-threatening or unknown substances. (ABC Illawarra: Mikalya McQuirk-Scolaro)
There were 2.3 hospital presentations per festival day during the trial, compared to an average of 3.6 over the previous two years.
“A trend towards decreasing hospital presentations during the trial year is seen,” the report states.
“This was seen across festivals of all sizes and music styles.”
Overdoses down during trial
Several festivals including Hyperdome, Yours and Owls, Laneway and Mighty Hoopla recorded zero drug-related presentations during the trial.
“There is a clear reduction in intubating numbers. I can tell you I’ve certainly noticed a distinct drop in serious presentations,” a healthcare worker told researchers.
“If you look at our statistics, of how many people end up in hospital on the nights of our events, the two events we had drug checking was significantly lower than previous events,” a festival promoter is quoted as saying.
