OB-GYN-L Messages for February, 2007: Re: A Vaccine to Save Women's Lives

Re: A Vaccine to Save Women's Lives

From: Henry Gregor

henrygregor@yahoo.com

Thu Feb 8 13:37:17 2007

"Joanne Bulley, MD" <islesannie@gmail.com> wrote: What is very "interesting" about the TEXAS mandate ... is that (now Pres) (then Gove) Geo W Bush did the whole "abstinence only" sex education AND encouraged the anti-condom religious right to do all sorts of public announcements that condoms as protection against anything was a crock of lies.

The results of those edicts and proclamations and advertising is that Texas has the highest teen pregnancy rate and the fastest growing HIV rates. Additionally, when they mandated "parental consent" for tehir abortion laws: the second trimester abortion rate went up because the 17.8 year olds who were pregnant and wanted to shoose abortion just wited until they were "old enough" to "consent" for themselves and had their terminations at beyond 12 weeks.

So the state with the most regressive laws and results regarding contracpetion and pregnancy ... has now mandated the HPV vaccine??? Does that tell us that those "in the know" ("wink-wink") realize that lots of sex is happening and since nothign is being done that truly decreases early and frequent sex with more than a single partner ... so the GIRLS should be vaccinated against the "sowing of wild oats" (as it used to be called) because there is lots of sex going on.

Just seems so weird that TEXAS was the state to make this edict...

Maybe I am biased ... but I don't think so.

Joanne

At Wed, 7 Feb 2007, Dean Huffman . wrote: >
>..
>
>I certainly have to agree with you about the propriety of the Texas governor,
>who stands to benefit financially from such a decision, making the regulation
>he did concerning the HPV vaccine. On the other hand, when has propriety been
>an issue in Texas politics. Molly Ivans would have had a field day on this
>one.
>
>I can also understand one wanting to wait until the vaccine has proven itself
>before using it.
>
>On the other hand, one never knows when their children will become sexually
>active and it appears that the best time to give the vaccine is BEFORE the
>first sexual activity. Hence giving it in the early teen or late pre-teen years
>makes sense to me.
>
>I also think that a good argument could be made for giving it to males, too,
>since they are generally the source of the female infections.
>
>For the record, I am getting the vaccine for my teenage daughters (late teens),
>too.
>
>I must also admit that I am ALWAYS uncomfortable with government mandates,
>whatever they are. This one, in Texas, has a funny smell to it. Nevertheless,
>when the decisions are made a scientific rather than political basis (are you
>listening George W. Bush), then I approve. Further, I feel that there are
>societal obligations. The person who is at risk for measles or polio (or HPV)
>has an obligation to protect himself, but also has an obligation to protect his
>contacts. The automobile driver has an obligation to protect himself, but also
>has an obligation to protect society from the cost of his medical care, lost
>wages, etc., when he has an injury that could have been prevented or reduced.
>
>I think we are largely in agreement here.
>
>Dean Huffman
>
>- - - -
>
>From: "Meenan, Anna"
>Subject: Re: A Vaccine to Save Women's Lives
>Date: Feb 7, 2007 12:08 PM
>
>I didn't mean to say that my 9-year-old daughter will NEVER be at risk for
>contracting or spreading HPV. (and I don't have a 9-year-old daughter. She's
>18.) I just meant to say that I strenuously object to a stockholder in a
>pharmaceutical company MANDATING that my 4th-grader (if I had one) get injected
>with their product within months after it hits the market, to prevent a disease
>that she is not at risk for AT THIS TIME. Since she's 18, I did get her
>vaccinated, even though she is not at risk at this time. The chance that she
>will become at risk is much higher. I might even be in favor of mandated
>vaccination at younger ages AFTER THE VACCINE HAS BEEN ON THE MARKET FOR A
>COUPLE OF YEARS.
>
>Anna Meenan, MD

-- Joanne Bulley, MD, FACOG Solo gyn Keene, NH USA

--------------------------------- Now that's room service! Choose from over 150,000 hotels --------------------------------- in 45,000 destinations on Yahoo! Travel to find your fit. ---------------------------------

use when must restrict search to only the ob-gyn-l forum...
Enter search keywords:
	Returns per screen: Require all keywords: