More than 3,500 older Australians have answered a National Seniors Australia survey of their views on voluntary assisted dying (VAD).
Of those who responded, 86% either supported or strongly supported the option of voluntary assisted dying for those with a terminal illness.
When asked about voluntary assisted dying when illness was not terminal, 67% either supported or strongly supported the option. There were three times as many people undecided on this question compared to the terminal illness one.
Over 650 respondents wrote comments about VAD, revealing diverse reasons behind their views.
National Seniors Australia's CEO Professor John McCallum said, for example, the report title "The Quality of Death?" is a verbatim comment from one person who wrote 'the quality of death should be given the same attention as the quality of birth'.
Professor McCallum said many of the comments were powerful and went beyond just the legislation.
