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  1. #78
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    Re: They are wanting to make the HPV vaccine mandatory in schools

    Merck suspends lobbying for vaccine
    By LINDA A. JOHNSON, AP Business Writer
    14 minutes ago


    TRENTON, N.J. - Merck & Co., bowing to pressure from parents and medical groups, is immediately suspending its lobbying campaign to persuade state legislatures to mandate that adolescent girls get the company's new vaccine against cervical cancer as a requirement for school attendance.

    The drug maker, which announced the change Tuesday, had been criticized for quietly funding the campaign, via a third party, to require 11- and 12-year-old girls get the three-dose vaccine in order to attend school.

    Some had objected because the vaccine protects against a sexually transmitted disease, human papilloma virus, which causes cervical cancer. Vaccines mandated for school attendance usually are for diseases easily spread through casual contact, such as measles and mumps. "Our goal is about cervical cancer prevention and we want to reach as many females as possible with Gardasil," Dr. Richard M. Haupt, Merck's medical director for vaccines, told The Associated Press. "We're concerned that our role in supporting school requirements is a distraction from that goal, and as such have suspended our lobbying efforts," Haupt said, adding the company will continue providing information about the vaccine if requested by government officials.

    Whitehouse Station-based Merck launched Gardasil, the first vaccine to prevent cervical cancer, in June. It protects against the two virus strains that cause 70 percent of cervical cancer and two strains that cause most genital warts.

    Sales totaled $235 million through the end of 2006, according to Merck.

    Last month, the AP reported that Merck was channeling money for its state-mandate campaign through Women in Government, an advocacy group made up of female state legislators across the country.

    Conservative groups opposed the campaign, saying it would encourage premarital sex, and parents' rights groups said it interfered with their control over their children.

    Even two of the prominent medical groups that supported broad use of the vaccine, the American Academy of Pediatricians and the American Academy of Family Practitioners, questioned Merck's timing, Haupt said Tuesday. "They, along with some other folks in the public health community, believe there needs to be more time," he said, to ensure government funding for the vaccine for uninsured girls is in place and that families and government officials have enough information about it.

    Legislatures in roughly 20 states have introduced measures that would mandate girls have the vaccine to attend school, but none has passed so far. However, Texas Gov. Rick Perry on Feb. 2 issued an executive order requiring Texas girls entering the sixth grade as of 2008 get the vaccinations, triggering protests from lawmakers in that state.

    Parents in Texas could opt out for their daughters if they state religious or philosophical objections, but several lawmakers there want parents to opt in instead of being able to opt out.

    Perry defended his order Tuesday, a day after lawmakers in Austin held a lengthy hearing on the issue but failed to act on a bill to override the order.

    Dr. Anne Francis, who chairs an American Academy of Pediatrics committee that advocates for better insurer reimbursement on vaccines, called Merck's change of heart "a good move for the public."

    "I believe that their timing was a little bit premature," she said, "so soon after (Gardasil's) release, before we have a picture of whether there are going to be any untoward side effects."

    Given that the country has been "burned" by some drugs whose serious side effects emerged only after they were in wide use, including Merck's withdrawn painkiller Vioxx, Francis said, it would be better to wait awhile before mandating Gardasil usage.

    She said she also was concerned about requiring a vaccine for a disease that is not communicable and so does not have a big public health impact. While doctors expect Gardasil to have a huge effect in poor countries where women do not get Pap smears, in this country those tests limit the incidence of cervical cancer to about 9,710 new cases and 3,700 deaths each year.

    The National Vaccine Information Center has been publicizing reports of side effects — mostly dizziness and fainting — in several dozen people getting Gardasil, which is approved for use in females ages 9 to 26. The center, a group of parents worried that vaccines harm some children, questions whether the vaccine was tested in enough young girls.

    Officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, however, say that reports of side effects through the end of January don't raise any red flags.

    The vaccine also is controversial because of its price — $360 for the three doses required over a six-month stretch. Because of that cost and what pediatricians and gynecologists say is inadequate reimbursement by insurers, many are choosing not to stock the vaccine or requiring surcharges to administer it, increasing the cost for many families and making the vaccine hard to come by.

    Merck shares were down in after-hours trading on the New York Stock Exchange, falling 35 cents to $44.15 after rising 22 cents in regular trading to close at $44.50.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070221/...4f565Yvm6s0NUE

    ___

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    Merck & Co.: http://www.merck.com
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  3. #79
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    Re: They are wanting to make the HPV vaccine mandatory in schools

    Vaccine meeting, Merck donation coincide
    By LIZ AUSTIN PETERSON, Associated Press Writer
    1 hour, 6 minutes ago


    AUSTIN, Texas - Gov. Rick Perry's chief of staff met with key aides about a new vaccine to prevent cervical cancer on the same day its manufacturer donated money to his campaign, documents obtained by The Associated Press show.

    Texas became the first state to require the vaccine against human papillomavirus earlier this month when Perry issued an executive order requiring it for girls entering sixth grade. Lawmakers are considering overriding the measure.

    A calendar for chief of staff Deirdre Delisi obtained under Texas' open records laws shows she met with the governor's budget director and three members of his office for an "HPV Vaccine for Children Briefing" on Oct. 16. That same day, Merck & Co.'s political action committee donated $5,000 to Perry and a total of $5,000 to eight state lawmakers.

    Perry spokesman Robert Black said the timing of the meeting and the donation was a coincidence. "There was no discussion of any kind of mandates," Black said.

    The documents obtained Wednesday by The AP provide new detail about the relationship between the governor's office and Merck, which makes the only HPV vaccine on the market.

    Perry's mandate has inflamed conservatives, who say it contradicts Texas' abstinence-only sexual education policies and intrudes too far into families' lives. Though there is a provision in state law that allows parents to opt out of the vaccine, opponents say the shots are too new and too costly to force on young girls.

    Merck had waged a behind-the-scenes lobbying campaign to get state legislatures to require 11- and 12-year-old girls to get the three-dose vaccine against the virus that can cause cervical cancer as a requirement for school attendance. But it announced Tuesday it was suspending those efforts after its motives were questioned. The New Jersey company stands to make billions if Gardasil is required nationwide.

    Critics had previously questioned Perry's ties to the company. Mike Toomey, Perry's former chief of staff and Delisi's predecessor, lobbies for Merck. And the governor accepted a total of $6,000 from Merck during his re-election campaign, including $1,000 in December 2005.

    According to Delisi's calendar, she met with Toomey three times in the six months before the order was issued. One meeting happened in August, on the same day two other Perry staffers met with a different Merck lobbyist for a "Merck HPV Vaccine update." The other meetings came just after the November election and just before the legislative session began in January.

    Black initially said he did not know what the two discussed, but later said the November and January meetings involved another company Toomey lobbies for. He also said the pair have been friends for years, and that Toomey has many clients other than Merck. He insisted that the governor did not decide to issue the mandate until well after the November election.

    Late Wednesday, Black issued a statement: "The Associated Press has tried to create a conspiracy where none exists, and they have offered not one shred of evidence to their baseless accusations that the governor's office has done anything wrong."

    Merck spokesman Ray Kerins, reached after business hours, said he could not immediately comment but would look into the matter. Calls seeking comment were made to a home number for Delisi and an office number for Toomey, but were not immediately returned.

    Cathie Adams, president of the conservative Texas Eagle Forum, said Black's explanation of the timing of the campaign contribution didn't sound right. "We have too many coincidences," she said. "I think that the voters of Texas would find that very hard to swallow."

    Bills have been introduced in about 20 states to require the vaccine, but they have struggled. Some parents' groups and doctors particularly object because the vaccine protects against a sexually transmitted disease. Vaccines mandated for school attendance usually are for diseases easily spread through casual contact, such as measles and mumps.

    A bill has passed the Virginia Legislature, but a spokesman for Gov. Timothy Kaine said he wants to review a provision that lets parents opt out before he says if he will sign it.

    ___

    Associated Press reporter Dena Potter in Richmond, Va. contributed to this report.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070222/...DcATP5az9H2ocA
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    Re: They are wanting to make the HPV vaccine mandatory in schools

    Texas governor defends vaccine order
    By JOE STINEBAKER and LIZ AUSTIN PETERSON, Associated Press Writers
    Thu Feb 22, 8:29 PM ET


    HOUSTON - Gov. Rick Perry on Thursday angrily defended his relationship with Merck & Co. and his executive order requiring that schoolgirls receive the drugmaker's vaccine against the sexually transmitted cervical-cancer virus.

    The Associated Press reported Wednesday that Perry's chief of staff had met with key aides about the vaccine on Oct. 16, the same day Merck's political action committee donated $5,000 to the governor's campaign.

    Perry, touring cancer centers around the state, said the contributions were just a small share of the $24 million he raised and had no effect on his decision. "When a company comes to me and says we have a cure for cancer, for me not to say, 'Please come into my office and let's hear your story for the people of the state of Texas, for young ladies who are dying of cancer,' would be the height of irresponsibility," the Republican governor said. "Whether or not they contributed to my campaign, I would suggest to you, are some of those weeds that we are trying to cut our way through."

    Pressed on when he decided to issue the Feb. 2 executive order requiring the vaccination for sixth-grade girls, Perry snapped: "I wish you all would quit splitting hairs, frankly, and get focused on 'Are we going to be working together to find the cure for cancers?' No, I can't tell you when."

    In issuing the order, the governor made Texas the first state to require the vaccine Gardasil for all schoolgirls. But many lawmakers have complained about his bypassing the Legislature altogether. And the disclosure regarding the campaign contributions could add momentum to an attempt by legislators to repeal Perry's executive order.

    The executive order has inflamed conservatives, who said it contradicts Texas' abstinence-only sexual education policies and intrudes into families' lives.

    Some GOP lawmakers said they were uncomfortable with the timing of the contributions. "It's really a question of integrity ... whether or not his decisions were based on the contribution," state Rep. Linda Harper Brown.

    On Wednesday, before the campaign contributions became known, the state House public health committee voted 6-3 to override Perry's order and sent the bill — co-sponsored by nearly two-thirds of state representatives — to the full House.

    The House is not expected to take up the measure until mid-March. A repeal has also been introduced in the Senate, with nearly half the chamber signing on.

    Perry said he has not decided whether to veto the bill if it reaches his desk. "I highly respect the legislative process that we have, and so I would respectfully tell you that we will let it play its way out," he said. "But do you think we would be having the debate today on HPV if I had said, 'Let's pass some legislation?'"

    Critics have previously questioned Perry's ties to Merck. Mike Toomey, Perry's former chief of staff, now lobbies for the drug company. And the governor accepted a total of $6,000 from Merck during his re-election campaign.

    Merck has waged a behind-the-scenes lobbying campaign to get state legislatures to require girls to get the three-dose vaccine to enroll in school. But on Tuesday the pharmaceutical company announced it was suspending the effort because of pressure from parents and medical groups.

    The Kentucky House on Thurday passed a bill that would require the vaccination for middle school girls unless their parents sign a form opposing it. The state has the nation's second-highest death rate from cervical cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the bill still needs Senate approval. Virginia lawmakers have also passed legislation requiring the vaccine, but the governor has not decided if he will sign it.

    ___

    Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers April Castro in Austin, Texas; Linda A. Johnson in Trenton, N.J.; and Roger Alford in Frankfort, Ky.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070223/...R2RlGbEsys0NUE
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  5. #81
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    Re: They are wanting to make the HPV vaccine mandatory in schools

    I think this is a great idea for mandatory vaccines. My 2 daughters will get them when there old enough. It Protects against certain strains of it but not all I hope to get it.
    I just found out I have HPV and hope that it will protect me against other types. Mine is more cervical cancer

  6. #82
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    Re: They are wanting to make the HPV vaccine mandatory in schools

    Texas families seek to block gov's order
    By JIM VERTUNO, Associated Press Writer
    1 hour, 39 minutes ago


    AUSTIN, Texas - A group of families has sued in an attempt to block Gov. Rick Perry's executive order requiring schoolgirls to be vaccinated against the virus that causes cervical cancer.

    The lawsuit challenges Perry's authority to issue the order and seeks to block any state money from being spent on the vaccine until that question is resolved, said Kenneth Chaiken, the attorney representing the families.

    "The school-age girls of Texas are not guinea pigs who may be subjected to medial procedures at the apparent whim of Texas' governor," according to the lawsuit, which was filed Thursday in Travis County.

    Perry, a Republican, wants to require the vaccine for girls entering sixth grade. It protects against strains of human papapillomavirus, or HPV, that cause most cases of cervical cancer and genital warts.

    Supporters of the vaccine requirement say it will help fight a cancer that kills 3,700 American women each year.

    But the order has inflamed conservatives who say it contradicts Texas' abstinence-only sexual education policies and intrudes into family lives. Chaiken said the lawsuit does not raise that moral objection.

    Perry is confident he had the authority to issue the order, his spokeswoman Krista Moody said.

    "He sees this vaccine as not only a fiscally responsible order but also one that has the potential to save the lives of thousands of women in Texas," Moody said.

    The governor's order also upset many lawmakers in his own party, and a bill to override the measure is moving through the state House.



    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070224/...BrlRs27wZa24cA
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  7. #83
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    Re: They are wanting to make the HPV vaccine mandatory in schools

    Parents' Dilemma
    Fri Feb 23, 3:00 AM ET


    What if you could protect your child from a potentially life-threatening disease with a simple vaccination, but administering those shots might encourage her to engage in behavior that, statistically speaking, would be far more likely to cause her grave harm?

    Parents of young girls face precisely this dilemma in deciding whether to immunize their pre-teen daughters with the new vaccine to prevent human papillomavirus (HPV), a sexually transmitted disease that can cause cervical cancer. Now, to complicate matters further, 20 states are considering mandating such vaccinations, even insisting girls can't attend school unless they've been inoculated; and one state — Texas — already requires the shots (effective September 2008).

    Gardasil, an anti-HPV vaccine produced by Merck & Co., was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and the company is aggressively marketing it through television ads and lobbying state legislatures to mandate vaccinations of all young girls. Gov. Rick Perry of Texas, who signed an executive order requiring sixth-grade girls to receive the shots, is under fire because his former chief of staff is now a lobbyist for Merck.

    The problem is the vaccine must be given before a girl is sexually active to guarantee immunity from the most common forms of the virus (there are 40 types of genital HPV, and Gardasil only protects against four, though two of these cause about 70 percent of cervical cancer cases in the U.S. ). But the question is: What age is appropriate, especially since the vaccine may only provide protection for five years and no booster currently exists (though one is in the works)?

    The makers of Gardasil and their advocates in state legislatures are operating on the assumption that all girls will become sexually active in their teen years. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about two thirds of girls have had sex by the time they are seniors in high school — which means at least one third haven't done so. But if the school starts immunizing girls as young as 9, as the makers of Gardasil recommend, doesn't it send a very strong message that the school expects those girls will be sexually active before they hit 14, since the drug won't necessarily be effective after that age?

    And the message may be even more provocative if the parents make the choice voluntarily. It may say to the girl, "Mommy and Daddy think you'll probably lose your virginity before your 14th birthday, so we are going to make sure you're vaccinated against HPV when you're 9 years old."

    There is no question that parental expectations play a role in teenage sexual behavior. An annual poll taken by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, for example, shows that 87 percent of teens think it would be easier to postpone sex and avoid teen pregnancy if they had open, honest discussions with their parents. And a whopping 92 percent say they think "society should provide them with a strong message to not have sex until they are at least out of high school."

    Of course, "society" sends exactly the opposite messages in advertising, television, film and popular music.

    What makes the campaign to vaccinate pre-pubescent girls against HPV all the more puzzling is what we know about current cervical cancer rates. Cervical cancer, while a killer worldwide, has been reduced dramatically in the U.S. by screening women through the use of a simple test, the Pap smear. Since 1955, cervical cancer rates are down 74 percent.

    Fewer than one in 10,000 women over 18 will get cervical cancer each year, and only about one in 30,000 will die from it, mostly those who failed to be tested on a regular basis and, therefore, didn't discover they had the disease until its later stages. Moreover, of those who do end up with cervical cancer, the majority contracted HPV, which usually takes 10-20 years to cause cancer, in their 20s or 30s.


    Parents ought to be able to make decisions about when to vaccinate their daughters against HPV on their own, without pressure from schools or lawmakers. Responsible parents might even use the occasion to open a frank discussion with their daughters about the dangers of all sexually transmitted diseases and the value of delaying sexual activity.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/uc/20070223/...fxtjk8YjH9wxIF

    This artilce makes some god points, information I had nor previously been aware of. If neglects what is one of my biggest concerns - side effects ( since it recieved FDA approval without being tested on the preteens they are now marketing it for ) and long term effects ( since it had only been availbel for six to eight months. -- JMHO
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  8. #84
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    Re: They are wanting to make the HPV vaccine mandatory in schools

    Judging from everything that I've read and heard about the vaccine, I'm unconvinced that it's the miracle drug that everyone is being led to believe that it is. On a personal note, Rick Perry is a weasel.
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    Re: They are wanting to make the HPV vaccine mandatory in schools

    Virginia to require vaccine for girls

    RICHMOND, Va. - Gov. Timothy M. Kaine said Thursday he would sign legislation requiring all sixth-grade girls to be vaccinated against the sexually transmitted virus that can cause cervical cancer.

    Virginia would become the second state to mandate the vaccine for the human papillomavirus, or HPV, and the first to do it through legislative action. Texas Gov. Rick Perry sidestepped the Legislature and ordered the shots for girls there, but lawmakers are considering overriding that order.

    "I think it strikes the right balance," said Kaine, who wanted to make sure parents would have enough time to review the vaccine and allow them to opt out "without having to jump through hoops."

    The requirement would go into effect for the 2009 school year. If parents want to opt out, they must review literature provided by their child's school, then sign a form.

    The federal government approved Gardasil, the only vaccine on the market, in June and suggested it be given to females before they become sexually active.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070302/...AAHW4qEc.s0NUE
    Laissez les bon temps rouler! Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.** a 4 day work week & sex slaves ~ I say Tyt for PRESIDENT! Not to be taken internally, literally or seriously ....Suki ebaynni IS THAT BETTER ?

  10. #86
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    Re: They are wanting to make the HPV vaccine mandatory in schools

    Well, holy hell I found another MAIN reason for Merck to get this vaccine MANDATED. I didn't know this

    http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache...lnk&cd=1&gl=us

    Were Gardasil to prove to be another Merck disaster, Governor Perry’s mandate requiring Gardasil be offered under the vaccine for children’s law which will create total immunity from lawsuits from those who take Gardasil and experience adverse or even life threatening reactions. This is because the Federal Vaccine Liability program shields pharmaceuticals that develop vaccines
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  11. #87
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    Re: They are wanting to make the HPV vaccine mandatory in schools

    Daaaammmnnnn .... Where did you find THAT ?!? Talk about a "motivator" considering all the lawsuits thay are facing due to the "undertesting" and side effects with some of their other products.
    Laissez les bon temps rouler! Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.** a 4 day work week & sex slaves ~ I say Tyt for PRESIDENT! Not to be taken internally, literally or seriously ....Suki ebaynni IS THAT BETTER ?

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    Re: They are wanting to make the HPV vaccine mandatory in schools

    I'm still looking for more info on it-between putting 2 8yo boys to bed tonight lol.

    ETA

    http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache...lnk&cd=7&gl=us
    Since 1986, vaccine makers have been protected from most liability in civil court through the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act in which Congress created a federal vaccine injury compensation program (VICP) that offers vaccine victims an alternative to the court system.
    Anger management courses at Walmart, you get what you pay for

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