A terminally ill elderly man who turned to Voluntary Assisted Dying after being refused home care has died.
Cyril Tooze, 86, was approved earlier this year for the highest level of home care assistance under the federal government’s MyAgedCare program because of his chronic lung and heart diseases.
The Adelaide Hills man was initially faced with a nine-month wait to receive home care, despite no one being able to care for him and his family on the interstate.
But when demand and staff shortages extended that period beyond October, he decided to end his life after a lengthy hospital stay following a fall at home.
Mr Tooze weighed just 46kg when he died last Friday Adelaide Advertiser reported.
Independent federal Mayo MP Rebekha Sharkie, who advocated for Mr Tooze, said it was an honor to have known him.
“The man I knew had so much courage and so much dignity right to the end,” she said.
‘To the end, he wanted his situation to shed light and provide a human story for the 76,000 other older Australians who, like him, are declining, having accidents and injuring themselves while waiting for a home care package they have assessed as needed.
As his wait for home care stretched into the past nine months, Cyril Tooze said he wanted to end his life
‘Despite a new law being urgently passed in the House of Representatives, there is no government plan to tackle the exhausting waiting list and the reality is that people are dying while waiting for home care.’
Federal Aged Care Minister Anika Wells said her thoughts were with Mr Tooze’s family and friends “as we mourn their loss, but appreciate Cyril’s life and his commitment to helping older Australians”.
After speaking to Mr Tooze, she said Anthony Albanese’s government is making a $4.3 billion investment in a new Support at Home program that will benefit about 1.4 million Australians by 2035.
“That program is specifically designed to help older Australians remain independent for longer, at home and in their communities,” Ms Wells said.
Independent Federal Mayo MP Rebekha Sharkie (pictured left) said it was an honor to know Mr Tooze (right)
With his only family living in Queensland and no other options for surgery to drain the fluid from his lungs, Mr Tooze recently told Nine News he was desperate to spend his days at home.
Although he was offered respite care, he still couldn’t afford it on top of the rent.
Mr. Tooze eventually received temporary home care assistance after he went public with his story in hopes that the federal government would finally act.
“They need to do something and do something quickly,” Mr. Tooze said.
“People are dying.”
South Australia’s voluntary dying program was introduced in January last year.
Tributes are flowing for Cyril Tooze (pictured with independent federal Mayo MP Rebekha Sharkie), who died last Friday aged 86
Consent may be granted if the applicant has been diagnosed with an incurable, advanced disease from which he or she will die within the next six months and which ’causes suffering that cannot be alleviated’.
Nearly 200 South Australians were approved to access VAD in the first year of the scheme.
VAD is legal in most Australian states.
The Northern Territory will be the only place where VAD will be illegal when the ACT’s scheme starts in November 2025.