The Queensland government should remove aged care from a planned inquiry to focus solely on palliative care and assisted dying, advocates say.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced a wide-ranging parliamentary review earlier this month looking at several issues including palliative care and assisted dying for terminally ill adults.
With the federal government announcing a royal commission into the aged-care sector earlier this week, the Clem Jones Group and Dying With Dignity Queensland argue that should be removed from the inquiry's terms of reference.
"It makes no sense for two levels of government to examine the same issues, and the federal royal commission gives everyone a forum to raise concerns about problems in the aged care sector which is largely a responsibility of the federal government anyway," Clem Jones Trust chairman David Muir said in a statement on Wednesday.
The groups say dropping aged care from the inquiry's terms of reference would allow it to deliver its recommendations sooner, and enable new laws to be considered before the next state election.
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"Inquiries in Victoria and Western Australia have taken at least 12 months, so we need action as soon as possible to make sure no Queenslander continues to suffer unnecessarily," Mr Muir said.
