HPV Vaccine Mandate for Students Coming to CA!

California Assembly Bill 659 (AB 6 59), also known as the "Cancer Prevention Act," was introduced on Feb. 9 and seeks to add the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine Gardasil to the list of vaccines required for boys and girls in Grades 8–12 to attend public or private schools in California.

The Assembly Health Committee could hear this bill as early as March 14.

WHY YOU SHOULD BE CONCERNED

▶︎ Gardasil, manufactured and marketed by Merck, received fast-tracked FDA approval, leaving many unanswered questions about its safety and efficacy. Gardasil only targets nine out of the over 200 strains of HPV.

▶︎ The risk of developing cancer from HPV is extremely rare. In the U.S., new cases of cervical cancer will affect approximately 0.8% of women, and approximately 0.2% of people will be diagnosed with anal cancer in their lifetime.

▶︎ Cervical cancer is largely treatable if caught early.

▶︎ Hundreds of individuals across the U.S. are filing lawsuits against Merck, claiming Gardasil caused serious, life-altering adverse effects, including death. Since 2019, Children’s Health Defense has been supporting over 60 lawsuits against Merck, alleging the drugmaker knowingly concealed adverse events associated with its Gardasil HPV vaccine.

▶︎ Gardasil can cause serious and debilitating adverse reactions for both boys and girls, including but not limited to:
▪︎ a multitude of autoimmune diseases
▪︎ autonomic dysfunction including postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) and orthostatic intolerance (OI)
▪︎ premature ovarian failure (POF) that leads to infertility
▪︎ Guillain-Barré syndrome
▪︎ encephalopathy
▪︎ other serious conditions, including death.

▶︎ Merck’s clinical trials of Gardasil did not look for or test for cancer prevention. Whether Gardasil provides any protection against cancer (let alone lifetime immunity) is unproven.

▶︎ For individuals with an active HPV infection at the time of vaccination, studies have shown up to a 44.6% increased risk of developing advanced abnormal pre-cancer not seen prior to vaccination.

▶︎ Over 90% of HPV infections cause no clinical symptoms, resolve without treatment and are cleared from the body by its own immune system. (A.C. de Freitas et al.)

▶︎ Since Gardasil’s introduction in 2006, the number of deaths from cervical cancer in the U.S. has shown essentially no improvement.

▶︎ This mandate would inhibit equal access to education and place students at risk for serious harm.

Gardasil still has unanswered questions on safety and efficacy. California no longer has philosophical or religious exemptions, and medical exemptions are nearly impossible to obtain.

Use the red "Take Action Now" button above to help educate the committee members about the impact AB 659 would have on the children of California.