Low vaccination rates in older people causing major concern and other top stories.

• Low vaccination rates in older people causing major concern

  

  Unvaccinated kids have been concerning doctors for years but another key at-risk group has immunisation rates so low the vast majority are vulnerable to a potentially fatal disease.Pneumococcal pneumonia (PP) is one of the most serious strains of the lung infection and is particularly dangerous for those with chronic illnesses and older Australians. Russell Winwood, 50, completes an Iron Man event with 30 per cent lung function. Photo: Supplied It's the latter group that has health advoc..

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• Doctors in schools program no cause for concern for parents, Victorian Government says

  

  Doctors in schools program no cause for concern for parents, Victorian Government says Posted May 10, 2016 10:31:07 The Victorian Government has fended off claims a new scheme giving students access to doctors at school would allow them to circumvent their parents to get access to medication such as the contraceptive pill.Under the initiative to begin next year, students at 100 state secondary schools will be able to make an appointment to see a doctor on school groun..

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• Queensland girl given cannabis oil by father dies of cancer

  

  Adam Koessler and his daughter Rumer Rose. A young Queensland girl whose father pleaded guilty to giving her cannabis oil to treat her cancer has died just days from her fourth birthday.Rumer Rose, who can only now be identified, died in her sleep early yesterday morning, her father Adam Koessler, 32, revealed on Facebook, the Brisbane Times reports."We are sure that Rumer came to this Earth knowing that she had a monumental battle to fight, and she fought it with everything she had," administr..

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• Bisexual Women Are at Higher Risk for Depression and Suicide

  

  A lack of acceptance for bisexuality is behind an increased risk for depression, anxiety, substance use, and suicidal thoughts. LGBT rights may be moving forward, but bisexual acceptance is trailing far behind.That’s the harrowing message behind a new study from researchers at Drexel University, which found that young bisexual women score significantly higher on a survey measuring current suicidal thought than both straight women and lesbians.The study, published in the Journal of Adolescent Hea..

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• Medicinal cannabis to be treatment option in Queensland 'within weeks'

  

  Medicinal cannabis to be treatment option in Queensland 'within weeks' By Gail Burke Posted May 10, 2016 17:19:56 Some Queensland doctors could be prescribing medicinal cannabis to patients from as early as next month, the State Government says.Health Minister Cameron Dick introduced legislation to Parliament to create a legal framework to control the use of cannabis for medical purposes, but the laws will not be debated until later in the year.The federal Thera..

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• Cosmetic surgery crackdown: Urgent action needed by states to protect patients, surgeons say

  

  Cosmetic surgery crackdown: Urgent action needed by states to protect patients, surgeons say Posted May 10, 2016 06:00:36 Leading surgeons say state and territory health authorities urgently need to tighten regulations governing where anaesthetics can be used, to protect cosmetic surgery patients.It comes in the wake of a major crackdown by the Medical Board into doctors performing cosmetic surgery.The changes include a seven-day cooling off period for patients consid..

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• NDIS: ad campaign for $22 billion disability reform scrapped ahead of launch

  

  The National Disability Insurance Scheme continues to face criticism from disability advocates. Photo: Supplied Disability advocates fear that information about the National Disability Insurance Scheme will not reach thousands of potential participants after the federal government dumped its ad campaign six weeks before the introduction of the $22 billion reform.The government scrapped the advertising campaign as part of a federal budget measure, diverting $..

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Bill Shorten visits Cairns on first day of Federal Election campaign .	WA Government moves to scale back debt in budget .
Expanding gene panel beyond known breast/ovarian cancer genes does not add any clinical benefit - News .	Walk or run, it's all for good in Mother's Day Classic .