Two Drug-Related Deaths at Stereosonic Rekindle Drug Testing Debate

Two deaths related to drug-use at Australia’s Stereosonic Festival have brought the debate over drug testing at music festivals.

A 19-year-old man, Stefan Woodward, and a 25-year-old woman, Sylvia Choi overdosed during the festival’s stop in Sydney, and both of those deaths are pinned on MDMA. A member of the Australian senate expressed concern over the actions taken by police at the festival, and whether or not the festival itself was capable of handling the health risks posed by drug use.

“We need to ask questions of what the police were doing. Thirty-five pills were confiscated when it appears that this concert was awash with pills. Using these pills seems to be a chemical form of Russian roulette. The other issue is what duty of care do the organizers of this event have.”
– Australian senator Nick Xenophon

Matt Noffs, the CEO of an Australian company focused on youth with addiction issues, tweeted that it was “#TimeToTest” after the festival deaths.

Where should the line be drawn on drug testing at festivals? People still possess and use drugs even when they are illegal. Drug testing could help save lives, even when illegal drugs are in question.

H/T DJMag