ACHD Considering HPV Vaccine Mandate For Children
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – The Allegheny County Health Department is considering a mandate that would require 11 and 12-year-olds to receive one of three doses of the HPV vaccine before being admitted to school.
According to our news partners at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the issue was discussed at a board meeting Wednesday night.
The three doses are administered over a six-month period. The vaccine protects against genital warts, throat and mouth infections and several types of cancer.
HPV is a sexually transmitted disease and the vaccine is given at that age before children come in contact with someone who carries it.
Currently, Pennsylvania requires one dose of meningococcal conjugate vaccine and one dose of Tdap before students enter seventh grade.
In Pittsburgh area, 27 percent girls and 21.8 percent of boys were fully vaccinated against HPV in 2014.
Allegheny County Health Department Director Karen Hacker said students with moral, religious or medical concerns would be exempt.
The Health Department is in the process of getting information from the community, which it plans to present it at the next board meeting on July 13.
If the board decides to go forward with the mandate, there would be a public comment period.
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