The Pros And Cons Of HPV Vaccines

The prevention of communicable diseases has remained a central goal in local and federal health legislation. States currently hold control over vaccine mandates in school systems, causing a debate amongst parents. HPV vaccines are a current requirement for school-age children. Factors such as evidence of long-term safety, method of transmission, and parental rights express a severe need for vaccination requirements in schools to be addressed in order to provide the utmost protection for students. Vaccines constitute a reputable defense against viruses and bacteria. The HPV, or Human Papillomavirus, “is the most common sexually transmitted infection affecting both males and females and is the cause of nearly all cases of cervical cancer” (What

Parents often disagree with requirements that lack complete information on consequences to their children. Contrary to popular beliefs, the HPV vaccine “is well tolerated with a favorable safety profile in participants of all ages” (Rivera Medina). When a medication exhibits an approved safety profile, it is not only safe for use by the public, but is effective in its treatment as well. One argument against vaccinations in general is the fact that “neither vaccines nor the diseases they combat are 100 percent predictable or controllable”, which can put into question the effectiveness of the medication (Welch). Although this is true, the skepticism of parents stems from a lack of knowledge of the vaccine, rather than a distrust in the vaccine’s effectiveness itself. Public information on the safety standards of new medications should be made more readily available for parents in order to improve the rate of

The optimal time for vaccinations is around grade-school age, between nine to twelve years old. What parents often overlook are the long-term benefits of the HPV vaccine, including “protection against genital warts and malignancies such as anal cancer, which affect both sexes” (The Lancet). Instead of waiting for a child to become sexually active, increasing their chance of contracting HPV, states enforce mandatory vaccinations as a precaution against future contractions. By immunizing at a younger age, it allows the immune system to build up a tolerance before the child is able to develop the disease. Arguments against such requirements are often based on misinformation, believing “vaccines are unnecessary…[since] many diseases have been eliminated through proper sanitation” (Samuels). HPV is not one such disease, and takes a larger effort to eliminate once contracted. Mandatory school vaccination requirements aid in the prevention of future cases of HPV by immunizing students before they become sexually