HAS Australia inadvertently strolled into a state of "she'll be right mate" when it comes to vaccination against influenza?
More than 72 people this year alone have died from the flu, and more than 166,000 cases of the flu have been reported through Sep, a sharp increase from 91,000 for all of last year and more than double the average caseload in the last five years, according to the Immunisation Coalition.
Michael Gannon, president of the Australian Medical Association, said the country was "woefully unprepared" for the pandemic flu outbreak and pointed to the low rate of vaccination in the country.
In America more than 40% of children received a flu vaccination last year according to the US National Center for Immunization Research and Surveillance, while in Australia the figure was under 10%.
Australia's laudable support for those most at risk, the very young and the elderly, has inadvertently neglected the mass of the population who are left with the impression they'll be "alright," the Immunisation Coalition said.
See immunisationcoalition.org.au.
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