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State Board of Ed will be voting on a resolution tomorrow, Thursday, April 12, regarding HPV. People can testify. Here's the text of the resolution and a link for more info. Colorado State Board of Education : Meeting & Agenda Browser Resolution calling for the rights of parents to be respected as they make health decisions for their own children. WHEREAS requiring school-aged children to receive certain vaccines in order to attend school started years ago as a public health concern so as to avoid widespread outbreaks of communicable diseases; and WHEREAS the human papillomavirus (HPV) does not present the same level of public health hazard as do the measles, mumps, rubella, and whooping cough. There is a reason why vaccines for these other illnesses are mandated: They are contagious disease that can be transmitted by virtue of an infected child walking into a classroom and breathing. From these communicable diseases, ALL children are at risk; and WHEREAS HPV can only be spread through sexual contact, mandating this vaccine as a condition of entry in school is unprecedented, and we believe it is an egregious overstep by government into what should only be a parent-physician-patient conversation; and WHEREAS the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) just approved in June 2006 the first vaccine that only covers 4 out of 30 types of HPV (Types 6, 11,16,18) which account for 70% of cervical cancers and 90% of genital warts.That still leaves 30% of cervical cancers and 10% of genital warts which arenot covered by the HPV vaccine; and WHEREAS the HPV vaccine does not protect against other sexually transmitted diseases (e.g., chlamydia, herpes, hepatitis, trichomoniasis, gonorrhea, syphilis, HIV, AIDS, etc.), administering the HPV vaccine to girls might give them and their parents a false sense of security from other STD's; and WHEREAS the manufacturer of the HPV vaccine (Merck) says that it is not recommended for use in pregnant women or girls, Colorado could be held liable unless girls 9-12 are first tested for pregnancy before receiving the HPV vaccine; and WHEREAS the long term consequences of the vaccine are not known as there is no long-term study of the HPV vaccine. Children in the 9-year-old age group have been monitored for only 18 months, and there have been no studies on the carcinogenic risk or the general toxicity of the vaccine itself. Between July 2006 and January 2007, there were 82 reports of adverse events filed with the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) following the receipt of the vaccine; and WHEREAS the length of efficacy is not known for certain. Young girls vaccinated at 9 to 10 years of age can lose protection in the 15- to 30-year range when they are most susceptible to HPV infection; and WHEREAS a study published last week in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) disclosed that only about 3% of all women are ever infected in their lifetime by the particular types of HPV (Types 6, 11, 16, 18) targeted by the vaccine; and WHEREAS the cost for buying and administering the three-dose vaccine is about $500 per child; and WHEREAS the cost of vaccinating 100 children will be about $50,000, but only 3 out of that 100 will ever be exposed to the HPV types targeted by the vaccine; and WHEREAS the vaccine reportedly wears off after about five years in the absence of booster shots and thus only a fraction of the children who receive the vaccine will even be protected more than five years later; and WHEREAS it is a wasteful use of scarce health care dollars to spend $50,000 per only 1 or 2 or 3 children who might be protected from contracting a virus years later; and WHEREAS the average age of diagnosis of cervical cancer is 48 years old, and it is wasteful to spend $50,000 now in the hope of protecting a child against a disease that will not arise until 30 years later, especially when far cheaper preventive methods are available; and WHEREAS the Association of American Physicians & Surgeons, the Texas Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics do not support making this vaccine mandatory; and WHEREAS Dr. Jon Abramson, of the CDC's advisory committee on immunization practices, said in a published report that "I told Merck my personal opinion that it shouldn't be mandated. And they heard it from other committee members.". THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Colorado State Board of Education does not support the mandatory HPV Vaccine program by making it a requirement in order to attend school, including home schools and private schools in the state of Colorado. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Colorado State Board of Education will not support forcing parents or taxpayers to fund this vaccination series. |
