AUSTIN, Texas - Bypassing the Legislature altogether, Republican Gov. Rick Perry issued an order Friday making Texas the first state to require that schoolgirls get vaccinated against the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer.
By employing an executive order, Perry sidestepped opposition in the Legislature from conservatives and parents" rights groups who fear such a requirement would condone premarital sex and interfere with the way Texans raise their children.
Beginning in September 2008, girls entering the sixth grade " meaning, generally, girls ages 11 and 12 " will have to receive Gardasil, Merck & Co."s new vaccine against strains of the human papillomavirus, or HPV.
Perry also directed state health authorities to make the vaccine available free to girls 9 to 18 who are uninsured or whose insurance does not cover vaccines. In addition, he ordered that Medicaid offer Gardasil to women ages 19 to 21.
Perry, a conservative Christian who opposes abortion and stem-cell research using embryonic cells, counts on the religious right for his political base. But he has said the cervical cancer vaccine is no different from the one that protects children against polio.
"The HPV vaccine provides us with an incredible opportunity to effectively target and prevent cervical cancer," Perry said.
Merck is bankrolling efforts to pass state laws across the country mandating Gardasil for girls as young as 11 or 12. It doubled its lobbying budget in Texas and has funneled money through Women in Government, an advocacy group made up of female state legislators around the country. Perry tied to Merck
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Yeah, that's pretty shady, and downright insulting to the legislative process. I don't know much about the Texas Constitution, but I have to wonder if this order is even legal. This isn't about communicable diseases like Polio...it's about an STD that can be avoided completely by most people simply by not slinging themselves around town. If people want to have sex, then they need to deal with the consequences.
Isn't this pushing the "universal healthcare" that this party absolutely refutes too? At taxpayers expense (medicaid) Sounds more like the ole pot calling the kettle black, AGAIN! [:'(]
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Perry is perhaps the most corrupt governor we have ever had in the State of Texas. He is also orchestrating the largest land grab in Texas history, all to line the pockets of his supporters.
He and our speaker, Tom Craddick, are worthy of exile.[:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@]
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I saw an ad today for the above mentioned drug it stated "it may help prevent certain types of cervical cancer" to me that means it not proven too?
This is from the FDA
Gardasil is a recombinant vaccine (contains no live virus) that is given as three injections over a six-month period. Immunization with Gardasil is expected to prevent most cases of cervical cancer due to HPV types included in the vaccine. However, females are not protected if they have been infected with that HPV type(s) prior to vaccination, indicating the importance of immunization before potential exposure to the virus. Also, Gardasil does not protect against less common HPV types not included in the vaccine, thus routine and regular pap screening remain critically important to detect precancerous changes in the cervix to allow treatment before cervical cancer develops.
"This is the first vaccine licensed specifically to prevent cervical cancer. Its rapid approval underscores FDA's commitment to help make safe and effective vaccines
Remember what has happened with some other drugs that have recieved rapid approval from the FDA,like Vioxx
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So much for freedom of choice and who is the rightful guardian of ones child. It should be a choice instead of a mandate.I would not permit my child to take a new drug that has not been tested over many years.Most drugs today get approval just for the money it could make. Have that not understood yet that every body has a different body chenistry?This drug could make your daughters unable to have children in the future. Have anyone thought of this? I am totally against any new drug that hits the market without proper testing and is ordered to be injected by a government into your child without the concern of future problems.If anyone cared about their children,You would not trust nor stand for the government ordering this upon your own. This is illegal and at the very least,I believe is more a disguise in what this drug really does. All I can ask of people from texas is make a stand and say no to this.Atleast give the people the choice to decide. This is very sinister act of what I believe to be true. What is next? You are all mandated by the government to take a computer chip under you skin for medical purposes. Do not be fooled by this mandatory test. For if you give into this they know that the identification chip will come just as easy for the people to be fooed into taking.This is just the begging of what they THINK they have the authority to do without your concent and your decision.Don't fall fot it people of texas. Ifyou fight this, you will not be alone in this battle and will not loose.
Not supporting Perry here, or approving of whatever ties he may have to Merck, but... Our kids are already required to take all kinds of other shots, measles, mumps, rubella, polio, etc., etc., etc. If this stuff is proven to prevent certain types of cancer, I don't see why it's any different from the other vaccinesthey have to take. If I had a daughter, and I knew there was a vaccination that could prevent her from getting cervical cancer, I think I'd want her to have it.
By the way, Charlie... Perry isn't our "new" governor. We've been stuck with him for about 7 years now, and by the time he leaves office, he'll have been the longest serving governor in Texas history.
Texas new Governor declares
