The Virginia House of Delegates voted Friday to no longer require girls to receive the vaccine for the human papillomavirus — a sexually transmitted disease that can lead to cervical cancer.
Republicans have fought the law since it went into affect in 2007, the first of its kind in the country. Currently, all girls must get vaccinated for HPV before entering the sixth grade, though parents can opt out after reviewing literature provided by the State Board of Health on the link between the disease and cervical cancer.
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HPV can also cause genital warts and has become a more prevalent concern among physicians in recent years.
A similar bill passed the House last year, but Senate Democrats killed it. Proponents are hopeful that the new makeup of the Senate, in which Republicans have a narrow edge, will improve the measure’s chancesof passing.
Democrats worry the rollback would put young girls at risk just to appease conservatives who prefer an abstinence-only approach to sex education.
So far the state has said it will still administer the vaccine for free to uninsured children who aren’t eligible for a federal program that provides it. But Democrats warn that could change if a new directive comes from the top.
“If we repeal this HPV law,” said Del. Dave Englin, D-Alexandria, “we’re going to make it more difficult for poor girls to have access” to the vaccine.
