Actions Taken On HPV Vaccine Legislation In Maine, Maryland, Minnesota

Main Category: Cancer / Oncology
Also Included In: Women's Health / Gynecology;  Immune System / Vaccines;  Cervical Cancer / HPV Vaccine
Article Date: 19 Feb 2007 - 12:00 PST

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The following highlights recent news of state actions on human papillomavirus vaccine legislation. Merck's HPV vaccine Gardasil and GlaxoSmithKline's HPV vaccine Cervarix in clinical trials have been shown to be 100% effective in preventing infection with HPV strains 16 and 18, which together cause about 70% of cervical cancer cases. FDA in July 2006 approved Gardasil for sale and marketing to girls and women ages nine to 26, and CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices later that month voted unanimously to recommend that girls ages 11 and 12 receive the vaccine. GSK in April plans to file for FDA approval of Cervarix, and it expects approval by the end of this year (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 2/1). Summaries appear below.

• Maine: Sen. Lisa Marrache (D) recently introduced a bill (LD 137) that aims to increase awareness about cervical cancer and promote access to HPV vaccines, the Bangor Daily News reports. The bill would require Maine's Department of Health and Human Services to provide coverage for HPV vaccines through the state's Medicaid program, known as MaineCare, and the Maine Immunization Program. It also would require the state to report vaccination rates, funding status and updated information on HPV vaccines to the Health and Human Services Committee in 2008 and 2010. In addition, the bill aims to increase awareness about cervical cancer and HPV vaccines by requiring Maine to develop informational materials and distribute them to schools, universities, health care clinics, libraries, shopping malls and other locations. Under the bill, Maine's Center for Disease Control and the Maine Medical Association would be required to develop educational sessions for doctors in the state. The cost of implementing the bill's proposals has not been determined, and a hearing date has not been scheduled for the bill. According to Dora Mills, head of the state's CDC, Maine already provides HPV vaccines for many low-income girls and women. In related news, Rep. Sean Faircloth (D) recently announced that he has withdrawn a bill (LD 414) that would have required all girls entering the sixth grade to receive HPV vaccines unless their parents opted out (Haskell, Bangor Daily News, 2/13).
  
  
• Maryland: Delegate Joseline Pena-Melnyk (D) has introduced a bill (HB 1049) that would form a task force to study the HPV vaccine after legislation that would have required girls entering the sixth grade to receive the vaccine was withdrawn earlier this month, the Washington Post reports (Wiggins, Washington Post, 2/11). Sen. Delores Kelley (D) introduced the measure in January but later said she was withdrawing it because parents and educators in the state are concerned about an additional vaccine requirement. Thousands of sixth- to ninth-grade students recently were denied admission to public schools because they were not vaccinated against chickenpox or hepatitis B. Kelley has said she likely will reintroduce the bill during the next legislative session (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 2/1). Pena-Melnyk said the task force -- which would be made up of doctors, educators and parents -- would address whether the vaccination would be mandatory, the age requirement and its affordability. The task force would report back to the General Assembly by December 2008 (Washington Post, 2/11).
  
  
• Minnesota: Lawmakers in both chambers of the Legislature recently introduced bills (HF 530, SF 243) that would require girls ages 12 or older to receive an HPV vaccine unless their parents or guardians opt them out of the requirement, the AP/St. Paul Pioneer Press reports (AP/St. Paul Pioneer Press, 2/14). According to the legislation, "no person ... may remain enrolled in any child care facility, elementary, or secondary school in this state after 18 months of enrollment unless ... the person has completed the primary schedule of immunizations," which includes an HPV vaccine for girls ages 12 and older. The legislation also says that parents or guardians requesting exemption from the vaccination must be given materials compiled by the state commissioner of health about HPV and the vaccine. The HPV vaccine requirement would apply to girls beginning with the 2009-2010 school term (SF 243 text, 2/14). The Minnesota Health Department recommends that girls receive the vaccine from their health care providers (AP/St. Paul Pioneer Press, 2/14).

"Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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