Calif. may mandate HPV shots for girls

SACRAMENTO, Dec. 8 (UPI) -- A controversial bill before the California legislature would require girls to be vaccinated against human papilloma virus when they enter sixth grade.

The virus, spread through sexual contact, can cause cervical cancer later in life.

"For the first time, there is a vaccine that can prevent a particular form of cancer -- and we want to take advantage of that," Democratic Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, who sponsored the measure, told the Sacramento Bee.

Critics say that the choice should be up to parents. They also argue that the vaccine would suggest to teenagers that they are expected to be sexually active and give a false sense of security.

"This has a high chance of sending the message to girls that you can have all the sexual contact you want, and you're protected, because you've had the shot," Randy Thomasson of the Campaign for Families and Children said. "It's not true."

But Dr. Gary Rose, president of the Medical Institute for Sexual Health, a Texas group advocating abstinence, said he supports vaccination because girls could be infected through rape or by infected husbands.