Res. No. 532-A
Resolution calling upon the New York State Legislature to pass legislation permitting health care practitioners to provide treatment to youth for the prevention of human papillomavirus, a common virus that can cause cancer.
By The Speaker (Council Member Mark-Viverito) and Council Members Cumbo, Johnson, Chin, Constantinides, Dickens, Eugene, Gentile, Gibson, Koo, Lander, Levine, Mendez, Richards, Rose, Crowley, Kallos, Cohen, Rodriguez, Cornegy and Williams
Whereas, According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HPV is so common that nearly all sexually active men and women contract it at some point in their lives; and
Whereas, According to the CDC, roughly 79 million Americans are currently infected with human papillomavirus; and
Whereas, According to the National Cancer Institute (NCI), HPV infections account for approximately five percent of all cancers worldwide; and
Whereas, According to NCI, HPV infections can cause genital warts, cervical cancer, anal cancer, vaginal cancer, vulvar cancer, penile cancer, and oropharyngeal cancer; and
Whereas, The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates that HPV infections are responsible for nearly all cervical cancers and anal cancers, about seventy percent of all vaginal cancers and vulvar cancers, roughly sixty percent of all penile cancers, and over seventy percent of all oropharyngeal cancers; and
Whereas, The CDC estimates that about 10,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with cervical cancer annually; and
Whereas, According to CDC, approximately 4,000 women in the United States die each year as a result of contracting cervical cancer; and
Whereas, HPV-related anal and oropharyngeal cancers rates are rising; and,
Whereas, The CDC estimates that about 21,000 HPV-related cancers could be prevented each year by getting vaccinated for HPV; and
Whereas, Two vaccines, Gardasil and Cervarix, are available to the public and protect against the most common types of HPV; and
Whereas, Cervarix prevents the two HPV types which cause 70 percent of cervical cancers; and
Whereas, Gardasil prevents four types of HPV and has been shown to protect against genital warts and cancers of the anus, vagina and vulva, in addition to cervical cancer; and
Whereas, Gardasil 9 is a new vaccine that will be distributed beginning February 2015; it prevents nine types of HPV and has the potential to prevent up to 90 percent of cervical, vulvar, vaginal and anal cancers, as well as genital warts; and
Whereas, The vaccines are administered in three doses over a period of six months; and
Whereas, The CDC recommends that all boys and girls ages 11 and 12 receive the vaccines, and that young women and men can be vaccinated up to the age of 26; and
Whereas, The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and CDC recommend administering the vaccines at a young age when immune response is highest and before sexual activity and possible exposure to HPV; and
Whereas, The Food and Drug Administration has approved and certified Gardasil, Cervarix and Gardasil 9 as safe and effective vaccines since 2006, 2009 and 2014, respectively; and
Whereas, Gardasil is approved for both males and females between ages 9 and 26, Cervarix is approved for females between ages 9 and 26, and Gardasil 9 is approved for females between ages 9 and 26 and males ages 9 through 15; and
Whereas, A study published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases revealed that among females in the United States between ages 14 to 19, the prevalence of HPV infections has decreased from 11.5% between the years 2003 and 2006 to 5.1% after Gardasil was available, specifically between the years 2007 and 2010; and
Whereas, In 2007, Australia implemented a nationally funded program offering Gardasil free to girls between ages 12 to 13, and during the two years that followed implemented similar programs for girls and women between ages 13 and 26; and
Whereas, A study conducted by the University of South Wales revealed that since the implementation of the program, the proportion of women in Australia under age 21 being diagnosed as having genital warts has decreased from 11.5% in 2007 to 0.85% in 2011; and
Whereas, The program in Australia demonstrates the effectiveness of drastically reducing HPV diagnoses by increasing access to the HPV vaccine; and
Whereas, While minors in New York State can access sexual and reproductive health services without parental consent, preventative services, such as the HPV vaccine, are not explicitly listed in State law as being permitted without parental consent; and
Whereas, Senator Liz Krueger and Assembly Member Amy Paulin introduced legislation in 2013 (S.3134-A/A.497-A) which would permit health care practitioners to provide health care related to the prevention of sexually transmissible diseases (STDs), including administering vaccines, to persons under the age of 18 without a parent's or guardian's consent; and
Whereas, Assembly Member Paulin has reintroduced this legislation in 2015 (A.1528) and Senator Krueger has stated she will reintroduce as well; and
Whereas, In 2012, California similarly began allowing minors to unilaterally consent to STD prevention services, including the HPV vaccine; and
Whereas, New York State should ensure that minors have access to the tools they need to prevent certain sexually transmitted diseases which can ultimately cause cancer; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the New York State Legislature to pass legislation permitting health care practitioners to provide treatment to youth for the prevention of human papillomavirus, a common virus that can cause cancer.
OA/CP
LS 2473
1/13/15