Alison Branley is a member of the ABC’s National Reporting Team. Her roles include researching, producing and reporting. Alison’s work appears online, on TV and on radio. She has worked for News Ltd and Fairfax as an award-winning newspaper and online reporter. She specialises in education, disability, health and social affairs journalism.
Follow Alison on Twitter: @Ally_bee
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There are concerns drug companies will be better able to hide how much they wine and dine doctors under changes to public reporting rules, with one expert labelling the changes a "step backwards" for transparency.
Topics: medical-ethics, doctors-and-medical-professionals, health, stroke, diseases-and-disorders, australia
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Sue Godfrey is one of those questioning the marketing of new-generation blood thinners including Pradaxa, the medication her elderly mother had been taking before she died of a stroke.
Topics: medical-ethics, doctors-and-medical-professionals, health, stroke, diseases-and-disorders, australia
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| UpdatedAn ABC investigation finds pharmaceutical companies spent more than $2.6 million on "educational events" for doctors on new-generation blood thinners in just six months in 2015, raising concerns the potentially risky drugs are being prescribed to some patients who may not need them.
Topics: medical-ethics, doctors-and-medical-professionals, health, stroke, diseases-and-disorders, australia
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| UpdatedPower companies are accused of "postcode discrimination" after one provider struck a special deal with inner-city suburbs in Sydney to reduce a controversial tree lopping program.
Topics: local-government, government-and-politics, environmental-policy, environment, sydney-2000, marrickville-2204, nsw, australia
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| UpdatedAustralia's ski season could shrink by up to 80 days a year by 2050 under worst-case predictions for climate change — but there are no plans to restrict ski resorts in national parks.
Topics: urban-development-and-planning, environmental-impact, community-and-society, national-parks, conservation, environment, perisher-valley-2624, nsw, australia, jindabyne-2627
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| UpdatedWith the snow all but gone for the season and the summer tourists starting to arrive, the ABC travels to the Kosciuszko National Park to look at just how much of an impact humans are having on the unique alpine environment.
Topics: national-parks, conservation, environmental-management, environmental-impact, environment, environmental-policy, environmental-health, health, jindabyne-2627, nsw, australia, perisher-valley-2624
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| UpdatedThere is "only a small window of opportunity left" to wipe out the insect that has the potential to be the worst invasive species to ever cross Australia's borders, according to a report obtained by the ABC.
Topics: invertebrates---insects-and-arachnids, animal-science, science-and-technology, government-and-politics, federal---state-issues, federal-government, ipswich-4305, qld, australia, nsw
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It is much easier to get a liquor licence in New South Wales, with new figures showing authorities have refused just one application in six months.
Topics: alcohol, health, parliament, government-and-politics, states-and-territories, mosman-2088, nsw, australia
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A man whose father lost $85,000 to scammers calls on banks to do more to prevent elder abuse.
Topics: older-people, consumer-finance, law-crime-and-justice, australia
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| UpdatedExperts are calling for more funding to help eradicate a potentially deadly foreign ant which plagues south-east Queensland and could soon spread to New South Wales.
Topics: invertebrates---insects-and-arachnids, agricultural-policy, australia
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A conservation group launches an appeal against a NSW court decision that allows a coal mine near Lithgow to release wastewater into Sydney's drinking catchment.
Topics: water-pollution, coal, industry, mining-industry, water-management, pollution, environment, nsw, sydney-2000, australia
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| UpdatedIndependent Sydney MP Alex Greenwich says the Star Casino should not be exempt from Sydney's lockout laws, after a leaked report suggests the venue has allegedly been under-reporting violent incidents.
Topics: government-and-politics, lifestyle-and-leisure, alcohol, assault, gambling, kings-cross-2011, pyrmont-2009, sydney-2000
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| UpdatedThere were 111 assaults at Sydney's Star Casino between March and August this year, and less than a third of them were reported to police, figures leaked to ABC reveal.
Topics: assault, crime, law-crime-and-justice, community-and-society, gambling, state-parliament, government-and-politics, states-and-territories, pyrmont-2009, nsw, australia, sydney-2000
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| UpdatedFigures contained in an internal State Government review of violence at Sydney's Star Casino show the number of serious incidents are more than three times higher than official crime statistics.
Topics: assault, crime, law-crime-and-justice, community-and-society, gambling, state-parliament, government-and-politics, states-and-territories, pyrmont-2009, nsw, australia, sydney-2000
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| UpdatedAn app that helps people quit alcohol, and fish facial recognition technology, are among the recipients of Google's latest round of Australian innovation grants.
Topics: internet-technology, internet-culture, australia
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| UpdatedThe number of cases of Zika virus detected in Australia is now up to 76, with seven cases diagnosed this year in Far North Queensland.
Topics: diseases-and-disorders, qld, australia
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Disability advocates ramp up calls for the National Disability Insurance Scheme to reverse a decision on the way it handles payments to participants.
Topics: disabilities, insurance, australia
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Primary school principals are calling for governments to ramp up efforts to streamline school starting ages across the country.
Topics: primary-schools, children, australia
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Universities are continuing to spruik a career in teaching to prospective students despite concerns there is a glut of graduates on the market.
Topics: university-and-further-education, teachers, australia
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| UpdatedNutrition experts are calling for a national standard for baby bottles following new research showing more than half the products on the Australian market have measurement markings that are missing or wrong.
Topics: babies, infant-health, australia
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| UpdatedWhen Noelle Martin was 17, predators stole a selfie she posted on her Facebook feed and posted it on porn websites around the world. Now she is calling on regulators to crack down on an emerging practice known as "parasite" or "morph" porn.
Topics: internet-technology, computers-and-technology, science-and-technology, law-crime-and-justice, internet-culture, information-and-communication, pornography, community-and-society, australia, nsw
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| UpdatedHomeowners whose properties are being acquired for the NorthConnex road project accuse the NSW Government of low-balling them on prices and then spending up to defend their challenges in the courts.
Topics: state-parliament, parliament, government-and-politics, nsw, australia, sydney-2000, north-sydney-2060
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Get Qualified Australia, a company which offered to turn people's practical life experience into a qualification, is being taken to court by the competition regulator over alleged misleading and unconscionable conduct.
Topics: adult-education, education, industry, education-industry, business-economics-and-finance, consumer-protection, australia
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| UpdatedThe parents of a baby girl who suffered permanent brain damage when she was accidentally administered laughing gas say she is experiencing constant seizures and must be fed through a tube.
Topics: health, healthcare-facilities, infant-health, bankstown-2200
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A Sydney charity that was looking after a profoundly disabled man when he was severely burned sends his family a $4,000 bill for his care.
Topics: carers, community-and-society, disabilities, health, state-parliament, parliament, government-and-politics, cherrybrook-2126, nsw, australia, sydney-2000