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On June 8, 2006, the FDA approved a vaccine called GARDASIL® to prevent certain conditions caused by certain types of HPV (human papillomavirus) for 9- to 26-year-old girls and women in the United States. The drug is manufactured by Merck & Co.
According to the Patient Information document posted on Merck's website concerning GARDASIL®, those taking the vaccine will need 3 doses each. Although the vaccine purports to prevent certain diseases caused by certain HPV types, it is not effective in treating or curing those diseases once contracted; and GARDASIL® will not protect against diseases caused by HPV types that are not included in the vaccine.
On February 2, 2007, Texas Governor Rick Perry ordered his state's health officials to require an HPV vaccination for all sixth-grade girls by the fall of 2008. The action was taken largely because Texas had the second highest rate of cervical cancer deaths last year – nearly 400 – and 1,169 new cases of the virus reported.
Following suit, Washington state officials are now proposing to spend millions of dollars to procure more than 100,000 doses of GARDASIL®, so that every girl in our state can be vaccinated against HPV. For the time being, Governor Chris Gregoire says the shots will not be mandatory; but that could change in the future.
The vaccine is currently available through the Spokane Regional Health District at a cost of $360; however, the governor wants to offer the vaccine for free by late spring 2007. Initially the state plans to buy 143,000 doses of HPV vaccine per year, and that will vaccinate about 47,000 girls.
Even though this new vaccine is mandatory in Texas, parents with religious or other conscience-based concerns will have the option of excluding their daughter(s) from being vaccinated. The question, then, for Spokane and other Washington parents is: Would you have any objection to your daughter or daughters being vaccinated with GARDASIL®? Why or why not?
We'd like to hear from you. Email us and we'll post your comments on Spokane.net. If you don't have time for that, then vote in our PulsePoll to let us know what you think.
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Poll Results ...
Question:
"Do you think GARDASIL® should become a mandatory vaccination for female children in Washington state?"
Results:
Yes -- 21.4%
No -- 71.4%
Only if it's available for free -- 0.0%
Undecided -- 7.1%
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