Science Leadership Academy

Thursday, October 30 - 7:00PM

Franklin Theater at The Franklin Institute

Newly-introduced HPV vaccines are enjoying rapid acceptance, fueled in part by sophisticated marketing, advertising and education programs. These programs have established a new framework for how the public is introduced to a virus (HPV), associated disease outcomes (cervical cancer, genital warts, etc.) and the role of preventive vaccines. These efforts have also resulted in many states either adopting or considering various kinds of requirements and mandates around this vaccine for young women. Recommendations that girls as young as 9 years old receive the vaccine, with the attendant assumptions about onset of sexual activity, have caused concerns among some groups. Finally, these new vaccines are among the most costly vaccines ever introduced, challenging how limited public health department resources are allocated.

But the introduction of HPV vaccines is also occurring against a troubling backdrop: declining public confidence in vaccines overall.

Recent outbreaks of measles in several cities, the worst in a decade, are alarming, especially as many of the childrenaffected were unvaccinated as a result of parental choice to exercise religious or philosophical objections to state immunization requirements. Groups raising concerns about vaccine safety and efficacy seem well financed and well organized. The American Academy of Pediatrics is among some 20 public health and science organizations that have formed a new coalition - The Immunization Alliance - specifically to address this public confidence issue.
This forum will explore the issues and lessons learned from ongoing HPV vaccine programs, and how this experience can inform strategies to address the crisis in public understanding and confidence around vaccines overall.

The forum is presented by the Center for Vaccine Ethics and Policy in partnership with The Franklin Institute.

The attached flyer provides additional detail.

Also, visit www.fi.edu/wellness for information.

[Posted on behalf of The Franklin Institute so that SLA can take advantage of this unique lecture -- Mr. Lehmann]