Group Criticizes Proposed HPV Vaccination Requirement
The Campaign for Children and Families is opposing a measure (AB 16) introduced last month by Assembly Speaker Pro Tempore Sally Lieber (D-San Jose) that would require all California girls entering the sixth grade to be immunized against human papillomavirus, the MediaNews/Contra Costa Times reports. HPV has been linked to cervical cancer.
Randy Thomasson, the group's president, says that the HPV vaccine is "promising" but that a successful policy would make the vaccine optional rather than mandatory. Thomasson said the measure should include education on avoiding the "risks" of premarital sex and practicing abstinence.
Lieber said that her legislation chose sixth grade girls because children receive other vaccinations for school at that age.
State law permits parents to refuse any vaccination because of a conflict of beliefs (Geissinger, MediaNews/Contra Costa Times, 1/5).