Actions Taken On HPV Vaccine Proposals In New Mexico, Utah, Washington, D.C.

Main Category: Cervical Cancer / HPV Vaccine
Article Date: 09 Apr 2007 - 6:00 PDT

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The following highlights recent state and territorial news related to human papillomavirus vaccines. Merck's HPV vaccine Gardasil in clinical trials has been shown to be 100% effective in preventing infection with strains 16 and 18, which together cause about 70% of cervical cancer cases, and about 99% effective in preventing HPV strains 6 and 11, which together with strains 16 and 18 cause about 90% of genital wart cases, among women not already infected with these strains. 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 (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 3/27). GlaxoSmithKline last week announced that it has filed for FDA approval of its experimental human papillomavirus vaccine Cervarix, which also has shown to be 100% effective in preventing infection with HPV strains 16 and 18 (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 3/30). Summaries appear below.

• New Mexico: Gov. Bill Richardson (D) on Tuesday said he will veto a bill (SB 1174) that would require girls entering the sixth grade to receive an HPV vaccine, the AP/Las Cruces Sun-News reports. Richardson last month said he would sign the bill (Baker, AP/Las Cruces Sun-News, 4/4). The measure, sponsored by Sen. Steve Komadina (R), also would have allowed parents to opt out of having their daughters vaccinated, and girls who are opted out would have been allowed to attend school. The legislation, which was set to take effect June 15, would have required the state health department to distribute literature about HPV and about the vaccine requirement (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 3/14). Richardson said he changed his mind about signing the bill after hearing concerns from physicians and patients, the Los Angeles Times reports (Los Angeles Times, 4/4). The governor said he plans to veto the measure because "there is insufficient time to educate parents, schools and health care providers" about HPV and the vaccine. Richardson signed a related bill (SB 407) that requires health insurance policies to cover HPV vaccinations for girls ages nine to 14. The New Mexico Department of Health will implement a program to collaborate with school districts to offer the vaccine next fall to girls entering the fifth grade, the AP/Sun-News reports (AP/Las Cruces Sun-News, 4/4).
  
  
• Utah: The parents of Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman (R), Jon and Karen Huntsman, on Wednesday announced they had donated $1 million to the Utah Department of Health for programs to educate girls and women about cervical cancer and to cover Gardasil vaccinations, the Salt Lake Tribune reports (Hamilton, Salt Lake Tribune, 4/5). The House Health and Human Services Committee in February voted not to approve a bill (HB 358) that would have provided $1 million to the health department for the program, which aimed to provide Gardasil to girls and women whose insurers do not cover the vaccine (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 2/12). Lawmakers instead funded a $25,000 information campaign about cervical cancer. Jon Huntsman, who is CEO of the chemicals company Huntsman Corp., wrote a note to David Sundwall, executive director of the health department, saying, "My quest in life and my pledge in death ... is to assist the eradication of cancer in all its ugly mannerisms, irrespective of cause" (Riccardi, Los Angeles Times, 4/5).
  
  
• Washington, D.C.: The City Council on Tuesday voted 7-3 to preliminarily approve a bill that would require girls entering the sixth grade to receive an HPV vaccine, the Washington Post reports (Levine, Washington Post, 4/4). According to the legislation, female students would be required to show proof of vaccination before enrolling in the sixth grade in District of Columbia Public Schools, unless their parent or legal guardian chose to "opt out" of the requirement (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 1/10). Girls would be able to opt out of the requirement for any reason, the Post reports. The council adopted an amendment to the bill, proposed by Council Member Marion Barry, that would provide a parent education program. According to the Post, the measure will face a second and final vote in the coming weeks, but Tuesday's vote indicates that the bill likely will pass. Mayor Adrian Fenty has given an initial endorsement of the measure (Washington Post, 4/4).

"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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