Hansard debates

Mrs McARTHUR (Western Victoria)

My adjournment matter is for the Minster for Health.

The coronavirus pandemic has tragically claimed the lives of 351 Victorians.

Every one of these lives lost is devastating for a circle of family and friends and is deeply regrettable.

In order to make rational, evidence-based policy decisions, there must be absolute transparency of all information and statistics relating to the consequences of the virus. This includes extenuating circumstances of death.

While it is uncomfortable to talk about, and is often dismissed as conspiracy theorising or inconsiderate, it is integral to understand what pre-existing conditions a deceased individual may have been afflicted with prior to contracting the virus. It is important information. There may be other circumstances, such as living wills preventing intubation, that are also factors in the deceased’s circumstances.

It is not sufficient to be told by the Premier that this young person or that aged-care resident died without knowing that there were other issues present that caused the patient to be especially vulnerable. People of all ages can be healthy or unhealthy.

It is now widely known that many victims are dying with the virus, not just because of it.

The government should have this information; if they don’t have it, they should get it and they should release the information to the public.

The action I seek is for the minister to release detailed anonymised data about the pre-existing health conditions and other circumstances that surround the deaths of Victorians with COVID-19.