State HPV vaccine requirements more likely to garner parental support if opt- out provision included
Key Takeaways
The inclusion of opt-out provisions makes parental support of state human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination requirements for school entry more likely. Unfortunately, researchers caution, such opt-out provisions may only serve to lessen the effectiveness of such provisions. They published their results in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.
HPV has been shown to cause most cases of cervical cancer, and a great number of vaginal vulvar, anal, penile, and oropharyngeal cancers as well.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendation is that, beginning at age 11 or 12 years, boys and girls receive the three-dose HPV vaccination series. CDC statistics, however, show that, as of 2014, only 22% of boys and only 40% of girls aged 13 to 17 had completed this vaccine series.
“HPV vaccination saves lives. We have an unprecedented opportunity to prevent thousands of HPV-associated cancers through vaccination and unfortunately, we are missing that opportunity,” said lead author William A. Calo, PhD, JD, postdoctoral research associate, department of health policy and management, University of North Carolina, Gillings School of Global Public Health, Chapel Hill, NC.
Beginning in 2006, 50% of US state legislatures introduced measures to add HPV to their list of required vaccines. Most were rejected, however, many times due to parental disapproval, or legal, ethical, or political concerns. Currently, only three states—Virginia, Rhode Island, and the District of Columbia—require the HPV vaccine for school enrollment. All of these states allow parents to opt out.
Dr. Calo and fellow researchers conducted this study to assess parental support for making the HPV vaccine mandatory for school entry. From November 2014 to January 2015, they performed a web-based survey of 1,501 parents who had at least one child, aged 11 to 17 years, living primarily in their households.
The survey inquired as to whether parents agreed with laws requiring all 11- and 12-year-olds to be vaccinated with the HPV series to be allowed entry into 6th grade. In all, 21% of parents agreed that these laws were a good idea, but 54% disagreed. An additional 25% noted that they neither agreed nor disagreed with the statement.
The 54% of parents who disagreed that such laws were a good idea received a follow up, with the addition of the following statement: “It is okay to have these laws only if parents can opt out when they want to.” With this addition, 57% of these parents agreed that the requirement was a good idea, while 21% disagreed.
Researchers also pinpointed some factors that influence parental approval of HPV vaccine requirements:
- 32% felt the vaccine was only promoted so that drug companies could make a profit.
- 40% felt the vaccine was effective in cervical cancer prevention.
Dr. Calo noted that the opt-out provision for the HPV vaccine may diminish the overall efficacy if many families chose to opt out.
“Any process for requesting an opt-out should have an educational component and encourage parents to carefully consider their decision,” Dr. Calo concluded.
This study was funded by a grant from the Merck Sharp & Dohme InvestigatorStudies Program.