The Age from Melbourne, Victoria, Australia • Page 2

NEWS 2 FRIDAY 2 OCTOBER 1998 THE AGE BRIEFS WamiBg on Mr Thwaites said the State Government's changes to its Health Services Act, which governs public hospital services, would make it much easier for the Medicare principles to be further watered down or abolished in future. The Premier, Mr Jeff Kennett, arid the Treasurer, Mr Alan Stockdale, have already said they would like to abolish Medicare, and Mr Thwaites said the new principles were the first step in that direction. He said Victoria could see more cases of hospitals giving priority to patients who could pay an up-front fee. hospitals is concerned, with one exception, that priority can be given to veterans, but only on the condition it does not disadvantage public patients," he said. Mr Knowles said the fact that the Labor Governments of NSW and Queensland had supported the new principles proved the public had no need to be concerned.

"Access to our public hospitals will be on the same terms and conditions as it has previously operated on clinical need, not ability to pay," Mr Knowles said. He said changing the principles was "not a huge point of dispute" between the states and Commonwealth. John Thwaites, said the principle of universal and equitable access to free public hospital services was under threat from the new law. The Medicare principles between the State and Commonwealth have been re-written after the recent signing of a new agreement. While the old agreement enshrined equal access to public hospitals, stressing a person's financial status or whether they had health insurance could not be taken into consideration, the new Medicare principles only refer to "public patients" having access based on clinical need.

Mr Thwaites said that this meant that "if two people come to a public hospital, the hospital will be able to give preference to a private patient who can "This is a back-door way of abolishing free and universal public health care," he said. This was strongly denied by the Health Minister, Mr Rob Knowles, -who accused Mr Thwaites of being and "plain Mr Knowles said the principles needed to be rewritten in a "more sensible but the substance of the agreement had not changed. "There is absolutely no difference between the new and old agreement as far as access to public Hey big fella, we're working on it, OK I 7 I l-'wMm Mil tears as she pleaded to the public for help to find her son's killers. Police particularly want to hear from two callers who rang anonymously with information about the case on the 25 September and 26 September. "Please, please ring back, I just need to know why they took him from me," Mrs Denise Jones said.

Mr Jones' girlfriend, Ms Mandy Angus, joined the plea. "For our peace of mind, we need to know who did this to him and why," she said. Mr Jones was last seen alive on 23 September. Man in court over sword slaying Nineteen-year-old Ms Jodie Ramage was "hacked to death" with a Samurai sword in her Narre Warren North home on 5 May last year, by Mr Boris Bogunovic, the Melbourne Supreme Court was told yesterday. Crown prosecufor Mr Nigel Parkinson said forensic evidence and blood-stained clothing linked Mr Bogunovic to the attack which led to Ms Ramage's death the next day.

Defence counsel Mr Bruce Walmsley said evidence would show that Mr Bogunovic, 24, who has pleaded not guilty, did not wield the sword and was not present during the attack. The trial before Justice George Hampel is continuing. Distributor aims for Titanic sales Twentieth Century Fox is spending $5 million on marketing to encourage Australians to buy their own copy of the blockbuster movie Titanic, released on video this week. The blitz includes television, magazine, radio and shopping centre advertising and a huge banner strung across the front of Myer in the Bourke Street Mall. Titanic won 1 1 Oscars, has taken $1 .8 billion at the box office and its soundtrack CD has sold 25 million copies, sitting at the top of the Australian charts for 15 weeks.

Trial ordered for police killing Two separate trials were ordered yesterday for six men charged with the murder of Sydney policeman Constable David Carty. A trial for brothers Mr Richard Adam, 30, and Mr Gilbert Adam, 32, both of Fairfield in Sydney's west, will start next week and last for up to two months. Justice James Wood said in the New South Wales Supreme Court that the second trial would follow as soon as possible, probably early next year. Constable Carty, 25, was stabbed to death in the car park of a Fairfield hotel on 18 April last year. Lotteries Tatts 2: (draw 4807) 26 and 3.

First division dividend $500. Keno: (draw 3568) 1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 28, 29, 34 40, 4 1 43, 46, 50, 56, 58, 59, 63, 65, 66, 69. Jackpot increases to $1,212,000. Powcrball: (draw 124) 16, 11,30, 4, 36. Powerball 38.

Man charged with Arkell murder A 19-year-old man charged with the mutilation murders of former Wollongong Mayor Mr Frank Arkell and a shopkeeper had intended to keep as a trophy the severed head of one of his victims, Wollongong Local Court was told yesterday. Mr Mark Van Krevel appeared yesterday charged with the murders of Mr Arkell, 67, and Mr David O'Hearn, 60, of Albion Park Rail. Mr Arkell, also a former New South Wales MP, was awaiting trial on paedophilia charges when he was found bludgeoned to death in his home on 27 June. Mr O'Hearn died on 12 June. Mr Van Krevel was remanded to reappear on 22 October.

Chemists crack down on crime Pharmacists have joined forces with police to cut the number of robberies on chemist stores. The federal Health Minister, Dr Michael Wooldridge, yesterday unveiled the Pharmacy Guild's national Pharmacy Watch program to fight thieves. The strategy was developed after latest crime statistics revealed the number of robberies on chemist stores had risen 12 percent in Victoria since 1 July. The guild has urged its 1200 Victorian members to use a cash register for change only and to install time-delay safes. Inmate sues jail over riot injuries An inmate of Port Phillip Prison is suing the State Government and the companies that run the prison for damages over burns he alleges he received during a riot in March.

In a County Court action believed to be the first by an inmate against the companies, Christopher Ballantyne claims he suffered severe shock and pain, second degree burns and a severe psychological and psychiatric reaction. Ballantyne claims negligence and a breach of statutory authority against the companies, which were awarded contracts to run and manage the prison by the Government. Marathon climb runs up a record Ultra-marathon runner Pat Farmer has finished his assault on the world vertical climbing record by running up and down 100,000 stairs in 24 hours. Event organisers said they were now waiting for confirmation that the effort was eligible for the Guinness Book of Records. Mr Farmer, 36, ran up and down the 1100 stairs of Sydney's AMP Tower, completing 101,934 stairs by 7.30am yesterday.

He hopes to raise more than $100,000 for autism research. Mother pleads for help on murder The mother of 24-year-old Royce Jones, from Geelong, whose body was found bound and gagged in a ditch near Ballarat, broke down in NOKIA 3810 MMllllllimBII i i 1MI llMIImillMIIi Hi Nicholas Burrowes, 9, of Somerville Primary School, feeds ain elephant at the Melbourne zoo yesterday. Sausage sizzles helped him raise $8000 for the new elephant enclosure, which still needs another $6.5 million to reach its target. Picture: craig sillitoe Divers inquest takes trip to A new law threatens access to hospitals, says the Opposition. By SANDRA McKAY STATE POLITICAL REPORTED People with private health insurance will be able to Jump the waiting list queue in public hospitals by paying an up-front fee, according to the State Opposition, which will oppose new legislation to be debated in State Parliament next week.

The shadow health minister, Mr Post-natal sex can be a killer, says study By RACHEL GIBSON You've survived the 36-hour labor and endured the screaming agony to deliver your baby with that last push. You share the joy with your partner by making love shortly after the birth. Wrong. While for most women, sex immediately after birth would be the furthest thing from their minds, according to new research, it could actually kill you. A study published yesterday in the British Medical Journal's Pdstgradu-ate Medical Journal reported two young women had died suddenly after making love within a week of birth.

The women died after developing air bubbles, or embolisms, in major heart and brain arteries and blood clots in the womb. A 22-year-old woman died eight days after having her third child and a 29-year-old died five days after the birth of her fourth child, the study report said. Couples in Australia are usually advised to avoid intercourse until their first post-natal check-up, usually six weeks after birth. Having sex earlier could be dangerous because of the high number of blood vessels remaining in the uterus after the placenta has been removed. During intercourse, the penis acts like a piston and may force air into exposed blood vessels.

Melbourne doctors said yesterday that women were not routinely warned of the danger of having intercourse too soon after birth, mainly because the risk was low and few couples resumed sex within five or six weeks. "In our community there must be a fairly low incidence of women who are sexually active before that time," said Dr Lou divisional director of maternity services at the Royal Women's Hospital in Melbourne. "If you have any stitching down there you're a bit sore, and often women are just so tired with a new baby they're up and down half the night and they're just exhausted. The fact that their oestrogen levels are low also means their libido is down." Dr Butterfield said he had not heard of any such deaths in Australia. STORES OPEN SUNDAY CLASSIC 35: Ideal for low users phone user this plan which includes Telstra MobileNet lowest call charges.

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The legal convoy entered the water, closely followed by two teams of water police. Mr Graham Houston, counsel for the Outer Edge Dive Company, has the reef swimming over-arm against the current and barely managing to maintain my position in the water. It was quite scary out there." The inquest resumes today in Cairns with final submissions to be made by each of the five barristers representing the family, various crew members and by counsel assisting. Mr Bailey told The Age that due to the wide publicity the case had received, Mr Nunan was considering allowing live television coverage of his decision, which is expected to be handed down within a week. told the inquest that this was a survivable accident, that the Lonergans were experienced divers, who could have swum to the safety of a nearby pontoon on Agincourt reef, which according to Outer Edge, was easily visible from the point where the Lonergans were last seen.

Mr Bailey, when asked by Vie Age if, based on his experience of the view, he thought the Lonergans would have been able to swim to the safety of a pontoon on Agincourt reef, across five kilometres of open sea, he replied: "Not a chance. I was ESS? A mobile phone will only work at it's best if it By PETER PATRICK CAIRNS In an unusual move, Cairns coroner Noel Nunan, who is holding the inquest into the disappearance of American divers Thomas and Eileen Lonergan, took a dive yesterday on the reef where the couple vanished. Mr Nunan was joined on the dive at St Crispin Reef by the senior crown prosecutor and counsel assisting, Mr John Bailey, members of Cairns CIB and counsel appearing for the families. 1 60hrs NiMH NOKIA Changeable Calculator, ClearCair, the best network, Telstra MobileNet, Australia's Number 1. I mHtet PHILIPS GENIE Small and lightweight, state of the art features, including voice-activated dialling electronic dairy and dock, lull graphic ALCATEL EASY Easy to use, one touch operation, talktime up to 2hrs 40mins and 1 20hrs Standby.

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