House bill could make HPV vaccine mandatory

Many school systems in Kentucky require that students receive several vaccinations before advancing into middle school. Similarly, the Student Health Services department at Eastern strongly recommends that all incoming freshmen receive additional vaccinations. Such vaccines include the MMR, Meningococcal, Hepatitis B and flu shots, according to Dr. Pradeep Bose, director of Student Health Services.

However, if House Bill 396, a bill to require school-aged children to receive the immunization against the human papillomavirus, passes through the state Senate, female students may be required to get another vaccination: the Gardasil series.

The Gardasil vaccination, according to pharmaceutical company Merck & Co., Inc., will forget strands 6, 11, 16 and 18 of the Human Papilloma Virus, which cause up to 70 percent of cervical cancer cases and genital warts.

This vaccination is given in a series of three injections over a span of six months and can be administered to girls between the ages of 9 and 26 years of age.

While the bill would primarily target sixth graders, Bose said he believes all females in the targeted age range should consider receiving the vaccine.

"I have to agree with the widespread use of the vaccine as a preventive measure...especially considering the devastating nature of the condition which it is intended to prevent," Bose said. "Cervical cancer is of high incidence, especially in our population in eastern Kentucky and particularly among African Americans."

Research by Merck & Co., Inc. has indicated several possible side effects such as pain, redness, itching and swelling at the injection site, as well as nausea, fever and dizziness following the injection.

While the vaccination is relatively new, Bose said he is in favor of a mandated vaccine both from a physician's standpoint as well as a public health standpoint.

"Given all the published researched data from several members of the pharmaceutical world, which makes a strong case linking certain strains of the HPV to the majority of cervical cancer cases, and the clinical trial results, which demonstrate unequivocally the effectiveness of the vaccine in preventing infection with virus strains included in the vaccine," Bose said, "I believe the benefits outweigh the possible side effects."

If the proposed bill survives the Senate vote, vaccination of girls as young as 11 may become mandatory.

However, parents and guardians may choose to forgo the vaccination for their daughters for any reason.

Bose said the term "mandatory" mainly applies to insurance companies, as all providers would be required to cover the vaccine.

Student Health Services provides the vaccination to any eligible female who wants it, Bose said.

Each injection costs $120 and a series of three is required to complete the vaccination.

Students can choose to have the vaccine billed to their Banner account, which would be collected at a later date from the University.

While a similar bill passed through the House last year, it did not pass in the Senate.

However, according to The Kentucky Post, House Bill 396 passed a committee vote of 9-5 and passed through the House legislature with a vote of 56-37 Feb. 22.

The bill will now travel to the Senate for further consideration.