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Iowa parents told state lawmakers Thursday that a bill requiring parental consent for children’s vaccinations against sexually transmitted diseases or infections would bolster parental rights, while medical experts argued the measure is at odds with efforts to lower Iowa’s high cancer rates.
Currently, Iowa law gives minors the ability to consent to medical care — without consent from their parents or guardians — in cases where the care is related to the prevention, diagnosis or treatment of sexually transmitted diseases or infections. The Iowa Legislature is considering Senate File 120, which would remove the ability for minors to consent to vaccines — such as the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine — without a parent’s input.
At Thursday’s meeting of the Senate Health and Human Services Subcommittee, several parents and speakers with groups such as Informed Choice Iowa expressed their concerns about the potential side effects associated with vaccines. Tracy Kennedy, a mother of five, said the bill was “common sense” in giving parents the ability to direct their child’s medical care.
“We all may have big feelings about vaccines, whether they’re efficient, whether they’re not,” Kennedy said. “But this is a bill about giving parents some power over their children’s decisions.”
But health care advocates said the HPV vaccine is highly effective, and argued the provision allowing minors to consent to vaccination was put in place specifically for vaccines related to STIs and STDs because some families may not have open conversations about such issues.
HPV can cause several types of genital cancer, including cervical cancer, penile cancer, anal cancer and vaginal cancer.
“I think there’s some well-intentioned parents who maybe are worried that allowing that child to have an HPV vaccine is giving their consent for their child being sexually active – we know that’s not true,” Chaney Yeast of Blank Children’s Hospital said. “We know health care providers, their goal is to help educate, have that discussion with the parent, the child, and then ultimately … we’re talking about adolescents having some autonomy in some of their body decision-making to prevent cancer.”
Jackie Cale with the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network said the bill goes against the goals stated by Gov. Kim Reynolds and others who say they want to combat the state’s high cancer rates. According to the Iowa Cancer Registry, Iowa has the nation’s fastest rising rate of cancer, and has had the second highest rate of new cancer cases for two years.
“This bill would be a step backwards in fight against cancer,” Cale said. “The cancers that were mentioned are life-altering, life-threatening and very expensive. And with many of those cancers, you are at risk of losing your fertility.”
The bill was approved by the subcommittee on a 2-1 vote, with Sen. Janet Petersen, D-Des Moines, opposing the legislation. Sen. Sandy Salmon, R-Janesville, said she supported the measure, saying the HPV vaccine should be treated the same as other childhood vaccinations.
“I think that if a child has to have parental consent for all the other vaccines, that this one should be no exception,” Salmon said. “Vaccines, its risks and benefits can be long-term, so I think a minor needs to have parental input on that decision regarding this vaccination, just like any other vaccination.”