Image at right: Testing of pills at venues saves lives, say protesters, and the answer is genuine testing, not more intense policing of events.
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Background information
Most of the information below has been abbreviated from a Wikipedia entry titled 'Drug checking'. The full text can be accessed at
Pill testing - definition
Drug checking or pill testing is a way to reduce the harm from drug consumption by allowing users to find out the content and purity of substances that they intend to consume. This enables users to make safer choices: to avoid more dangerous substances, to use smaller quantities, and to avoid dangerous combinations.
Drug checking initially focused on ecstasy (MDMA) users in electronic dance music events, but the services have broadened as drug use has become more complex. These developments have been strongly affected by local laws and culture, resulting in a diverse range of services, both for mobile services that attend events and festivals and fixed sites in town centres and entertainment districts.
People intending to take drugs provide a small sample to the testing service (often less than a single dose). Test results may be provided immediately, after a short waiting period, or later. Drug checking services use this time to discuss health risks and safe behaviour with the service users. The services also provide public health information about drug use, new psychoactive substances, and trends at a national level.
Countries offering pill testing
Drug checking services have developed over the last twenty-five years in twenty-one countries and are being considered in more, although attempts to implement them in some countries have been hindered by local laws. Thirteen European countries offer pill testing - the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Hungary, Belgium, Luxemburg, and Slovenia. Pill testing services are also available in the United Kingdom, the United States, Mexico, Canada, Uruguay, Colombia, New Zealand and in Canberra and soon in Queensland in Australia.
History
The earliest reported drug checking activity began in Amsterdam in November 1970 with a group from the University Hospital of Amsterdam and samples obtained through psychiatrists working with people who used drugs.
The Dutch service is now formally the Drug Information and Monitoring System (DIMS) supported by the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport. Since 1992 the service has tested over 100,000 drug samples at a national network of twenty-three testing facilities. Service users receive results within a week via phone or email and the service publishes aggregated results describing what substances are in use.
Other European countries have led the introduction of drug checking services, with Asociación Hegoak Elkartea founded in Spain in 1994, TechnoPlus in France founded in 1995, and Modus Fiesta in Belgium in 1996. DanceSafe have operated in the USA since 1998 providing reagent testing and harm reduction advice.
More recent services include Neutravel founded in Italy in 2007, The Loop founded in the UK in 2013 and KnowYourStuffNZ in New Zealand in 2015 with Pill Testing Australia launching after a successful trial in 2018.
In November 2021 New Zealand became the first country to make drug checking fully legal after previously allowing this under temporary legislation. Other countries like the Netherlands allow drug checking but do not have legislation to protect the clients or testers, and the practice exists in a legal grey area in countries like the US and UK.
Pill testing in Australia
Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
On-site pill testing from a mobile facility was first offered in the ACT at the Groovin the Moo festival in 2018.
The same service was offered at the festival in 2019.
The service was discontinued in following years because the service providers were unable to find an insurer.
The ACT Government launched Australia's first fixed-site health and drug checking service, CanTEST, as a six-month pilot in July 2022. The service has now been extended to December 2024.
In 2023 on-site festival pill testing was again offered in the ACT and CanTEST extended its hours of operation to accommodate festival goers.
Queensland
In February 2023, the Queensland Health Minister, Yvette D'Ath, announced that her state would introduce pill testing at mobile and fixed sites following the success of trials in Canberra.
As of January 17, 2024, no testing centre had been opened in Queensland.No other Australian state or territory has announced plans to begin pill testing.