Hundreds of Australians are dying unnecessarily each year because they are not taking their asthma medication as directed, respiratory specialists have warned. A report released yesterday by the National Asthma Campaign said half of the country's asthmatics were not taking their medicine as directed. And one in four asthmatics took their medicine only when they felt 'out of control''. This resulted in an increased incidence of severe attacks, hospital admissions and, sometimes, death. The report has found that Australia, with one of the highest asthma rates in the world, has the second highest asthma death rate, with 730 deaths in 1996, down from 964 in 1989.