Posted on 02/02/2007 1:28:44 PM PST by YCTHouston
AUSTIN — Gov. Rick Perry ordered today that schoolgirls in Texas must be vaccinated against the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer, making Texas the first state to require the shots.
The girls will have to get Merck & Co.'s new vaccine against strains of the human papillomavirus, or HPV, that are responsible for most cases of cervical cancer.
Merck is bankrolling efforts to pass laws in state legislatures across the country mandating it Gardasil vaccine 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.
Details of the order were not immediately available, but the governor's office confirmed to The Associated Press that he was signing the order and he would comment Friday afternoon.
Perry has several ties to Merck and Women in Government. One of the drug company's three lobbyists in Texas is Mike Toomey, his former chief of staff. His current chief of staff's mother-in-law, Texas Republican state Rep. Dianne White Delisi, is a state director for Women in Government.
Toomey was expected to be able to woo conservative legislators concerned about the requirement stepping on parent's rights and about signaling tacit approval of sexual activity to young girls. Delisi, as head of the House public health committee, which likely would have considered legislation filed by a Democratic member, also would have helped ease conservative opposition.
Perry also received $6,000 from Merck's political action committee during his re-election campaign.
It wasn't immediately clear how long the order would last and whether the legislation was still necessary. However it could have been difficult to muster support from lawmakers who champion abstinence education and parents' rights.
Perry, a conservative Christian who opposes abortion rights 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 than the one that protects children against polio.
"If there are diseases in our society that are going to cost us large amounts of money, it just makes good economic sense, not to mention the health and well being of these individuals to have those vaccines available," he said.
Texas allows parents to opt out of inoculations by filing an affidavit stating that he or she objected to the vaccine for religious or philosophical reasons.
Even with such provisions, however, conservative groups say mandates take away parents' rights to be the primary medical decision maker for their children.
The federal government approved Gardasil in June, and a government advisory panel has recommended that all girls get the shots at 11 and 12, before they are likely to be sexually active.
The New Jersey-based drug company could generate billions in sales if Gardasil — at $360 for the three-shot regimen — were made mandatory across the country. Most insurance companies now cover the vaccine, which has been shown to have no serious side effects.
Merck spokeswoman Janet Skidmore would not say how much the company is spending on lobbyists or how much it has donated to Women in Government. Susan Crosby, the group's president, also declined to specify how much the drug company gave.
A top official from Merck's vaccine division sits on Women in Government's business council, and many of the bills around the country have been introduced by members of Women in Government.
Here's another from Townhall:
http://www.townhall.com/News/newsarticle.aspx?ContentGuid=02f981ba-aeb5-4a06-b98d-546fd3dbb321
Excerpt:
"On the litigation front, Merck reported that as of Dec. 31 it faced approximately 27,400 lawsuits, some involving multiple plaintiffs, alleging harm from Vioxx. The company pulled the one-time blockbuster arthritis pill from the market in September 2004 after research showed it increased risk of heart attacks and strokes.
Merck also said it faces about 265 potential Vioxx class-action lawsuits alleging personal injury or economic loss, and has entered about 14,180 agreements with other potential claimants suspending the time limit for them to sue.
The company said it added $75 million to its Vioxx legal defense fund in the quarter, after adding $598 million in the third quarter and $295 million in 2005.
It set aside another $48 million to start a legal defense reserve for lawsuits alleging that Fosamax destroys bone in the jaw; the company faces more than 100 such lawsuits.
Despite the problems, the company said it is still on track to produce double-digit annual growth in earnings per share, excluding one-time charges, by 2010."
I'm not sure if this has been posted.
'According to USA Today, Mike Toomey, Perry’s former chief of staff, serves as one of the drug company’s three lobbyists in Texas. Perry’s current chief of staff’s mother-in-law, Texas Republican state Rep. Dianne White Delisi, is a head of Women in Government.
“Perry also received $6,000 from Merck’s political action committee during his re-election campaign,” USA Today says.'
Instead, the MO here is a totally obnoxious and repellant show of misplaced power and statism.
Whether safe or 'appears safe'; implementing such, is well beyond the starting point here of whether this should be a 'private/personal' decision. Which is should be. . .unequivically and absolutely. . .
Sure, just label it *endangering the welfare of a child* and they can do what they want. Once they're in state possession, they're wards of the state and it's s done deal.
Seems to me that I recall some experimentation on small children in foster care concerning AIDS medication or some such thing. IIRC, it happened in the NYC area. Does that sound familiar to anyone else?
I thought it was still required, but now it makes me wonder about all the stuff that's out there and just how well it really was tested.
It seems that the lobbyists who were hired by Merck actually ended up doing too good of a job. If they had only slipped this new vaccine in a little more subtly, without a gubernatorial "mandate", it would have flown right under the radar. The "mandate" could have been done later. Instead, it looks like everyone got a little greedy. That's almost funny.
During a pap test it can be discovered. Some of these girls are much too young for an invasive exam.
you are welcome...
Money talks...campaign funds from Merck probably allowed more leeway on Vioxx than should have occurred too...but that would be just uninformed speculation on my part...
Reagan80
P.S. - Happy 96th to the Great Communicator, may he Rest In Peace...
Well, if they are having sex then they need the to have the invasive exam, period.
If they are not having sex, then they don't need it.
Even if they have the vaccine, they still need to have a pap smear yearly.
Merck also said that about VIOXX, later found to cause heart attacks.
Gardasil only covers 4 of the 100 strains of HPV. The cost outweighs the benefits, IMHO.
Here's a wise statement by a Texas legislator:
In a just-released statement, District 7 Texas State Senator Dan Patrick offered the following comment on Gov. Rick Perry’s HPV executive order:
“I am disappointed in the Governor’s recent decision. There are many questions left to be answered concerning this vaccination, its effectiveness, its cost, its application and its long term effect. With no communication prior to the order from the Governor’s office about the immediate health impact many are left wondering ‘what’s the rush.’ Still worse, why would this Governor seek to circumvent the legislative process in this manner.
“The research I have come across indicates there are at least 100 strains of the Human Papillomavirus and the vaccination, Gardasil, only treats four of them. The American Cancer Society reports most women do not get cervical cancer from HPV and the National Institutes of Health report more than 90% of all HPV cases are harmless and go away without treatment. Currently, some parents opt to have their daughters vaccinated without a state mandate. At this point, I believe the optional vaccination alternative is the correct approach.
“For some, a mandatory HPV vaccination of all girls between the age of 11 and 12 may prove to be a well reasoned decision, but this process leads many to think there is much we don’t yet know about the Governor’s decision.
“The Governor owes it to the Legislature and to the public as to why these emergency actions are justified. Governor, is HPV the new black plague? If not, then we should respect the elected representative process. Let us debate these issues in public as it was intended.”
Good find, but why is Patrick, etc., dancing around Perry's connections? I've heard plenty of talking heads, both inside the legislature and out, talk about Perry circumventing the process, but none seem to really want to discuss Perry's connections to the Merck people.
Um, actaully no, it's not logical. Keeping something out of someone's body is a far cry from dictiating that something must be put in.
Also, in the first case it's the individual who's putting it into his own body; in the second, it's a outside entity putting something in. Not the same thing at all.
It'll cut down on transmission of other things, too. Just think, one shot takes care of it all.
Gee, it sure got quiet around here. Where'd everybody go?
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