Queensland Parliament's health committee has recommended passing the voluntary assisted dying laws that were first proposed in late 2018.

Key points: Health committee chair Aaron Harper says the proposal was given extensive consideration

Health committee chair Aaron Harper says the proposal was given extensive consideration The bipartisan committee held 41 hearings and received 4,729 submissions

The bipartisan committee held 41 hearings and received 4,729 submissions Mr Harper says most people who engaged with them supported the bill

The committee spent much of last year taking submissions on the proposal and today made a number of recommendations.

Under the proposal, people aged 18 years and older would be allowed to seek an assisted death if they were diagnosed by a medical practitioner as having an advanced and progressive terminal illness, or neurodegenerative condition.

But the committee recommended any assisted dying scheme should not propose a precise anticipated date of death for a person before they could access it "due to the complex, subjective and unpredictable nature of the prognosis of terminal illness".

Support from Queenslanders

Health, Communities, Disability Services and Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Committee chairperson Aaron Harper said the State Government had given extensive thought to the proposal.

"The majority of Queenslanders who engaged with the inquiry supported the introduction of voluntary assisted dying and our recommendation to the Parliament reflects this," he said.

"We believe citizens should have the choice to access voluntary assisted dying if they fit the strict eligibility criteria and if this is a choice made by them.

"The inquiry engaged with thousands of Queenslanders.

"We held 41 hearings across the state and received 4,729 written submissions. The views and experiences of submitters and over 500 witnesses informed our findings and recommendations."

Queensland Parliament has been suspended due to the coronavirus outbreak.

To become law the bill still needs to be drafted, introduced to Parliament and debated – with no clear timeframe when this will happen.

State Opposition raises concerns

The LNP has two members on the six-member health committee who raised concerns about the proposal overshadowing increased palliative care services.

"No decision should be made whilst the issue of palliative care is so poorly funded, understood, barely accessible and neglected," their joint statement said.

"Additionally, the logic relied on by the majority is flawed or not supported by evidence.

"The LNP members accept this is a very emotional question and agree there are deeply held beliefs.

"The conclusion we have come to is not to be seen as belittling people's beliefs, rather a criticism of a flawed process."

Community opinions divided

David Muir from the Clem Jones Trust welcomed the move and urged the State Government to introduce the legislation before the end of the year, saying "time is of the essence".

"We recognise that the State Parliament has scaled back its sitting schedule because of the coronavirus, but other vital issues like voluntary assisted dying (VAD) should still be addressed," he said.

"Queenslanders expect swift and bipartisan support for the passage of any new laws related to battling the current virus emergency, meaning MPs could devote appropriate time to considering new VAD laws."

"The inquiry report places strong emphasis on the figures it received from the National Coronial Information System showing that each month an average of seven terminally ill Queenslanders take their own lives because they fear what lies in store for them."

But Cherish Life's Queensland president Donna Purcell said the proposal lacked safeguards.

"There are no safeguards against wrongful deaths caused by wrong diagnosis, wrong prognosis, patients being unaware of available treatment or having no access to palliative care, or coercion and elder abuse," Dr Purcell said.

"No Queenslanders should be forced to choose euthanasia because they cannot get access to palliative care which would ease their pain.

"The Queensland Government needs to be fully focused on saving lives, not taking them."