The Health Center is expected to make available its first shipment of Gardasil, the Human Papillomavirus vaccine, by the end of this month, according to the Health Center's Web site.
HPV, as the virus is more commonly referred to, is a sexually transmitted disease that will infect approximately 50 percent of sexually active people in their lives, according to the Centers for Disease Control Web site.
JoAnna Smith, director of Women's Initiative, said as soon as the group heard about the new HPV prevention treatment, it pressured the Health Center to provide the vaccine.
Women's Initiative works to get information on sex and gender issues spread across the AU community. In the future, the group is hoping to combine forces with the National Organization of College Democrats to start a campaign to promote HPV awareness around campus, Smith said.
HPV can be spread through any type of genital contact, even with the use of a condom, according to the CDC. A lot of time, HPV will result in no outward symptoms and a person will transfer the disease without ever realizing he or she had acquired it, according to the CDC.
In some instances, if HPV is left untreated, it can result in cell mutations in a woman's cervix, ultimately leading to cervical cancer over time, the CDC said.
The three-part vaccine can be given to women ranging from nine to 26 years old, according to the CDC.
The Health Center Web site said each shot will cost $150. The vaccine is administered in three separate shots at specific time intervals.
According to the American Cancer Society, the price for each dose is $120; however, the society states that this price does not include the doctor's charge or the price of administering the vaccination.
As of right now, the Health Center is unable to accept any insurance policies to cover the cost of the vaccination. However, it is looking into the possibility of including the HPV vaccinations in its Student Health Insurance plan for the 2007-2008 policy year.
Most insurance plans should cover the costs of vaccination, according to the American Cancer Society. However, it said there may be a period of lag time in which some providers do not cover the vaccine.
Some insurance providers have provided additional roadblocks for young women wishing to receive the vaccine, according to CNN.com. A Feb. 2 report said many practices must have $50,000 or more in vaccine inventory, which causes them to run multiple refrigerators, insure the vaccines and spend resources on inventory management, leading to a higher price. As a result, CNN said most insurers reimburse only $2 to $15 of the total $120 price tag per dose charged by Gardasil's developer, Merck and Co.
Any stigma associated with the vaccine for possibly promoting more promiscuity among teenagers and young adults, with the notion of safer sex, seems to not be affecting the AU community. According to some students, the cost of the vaccination is playing a greater role in determining whether they will request the treatment.
"I think the positives of the HPV vaccine in preventing HPV and cervical cancer outweigh the negatives of a possibly more sexualized community emerging," Annika Pettitt, a freshman in the School of International Service, said. "I would be willing to get the series of shots if the insurance on campus paid for it."
Amanda Sewell, a freshman in SIS, echoed her support for the vaccine on campus, which, she said, makes getting vaccinated more convenient.
"I think the availability of the HPV vaccine on campus is very important, especially when there are no other means of preventing such a serious virus from occurring," she said. "It is especially important to have the treatment on campus, because a lot of students will not go to a doctor for a costly vaccine, if it is inconvenient for them."
Sewell said she believed having the vaccine covered by insurance plans would encourage more students to get it.
"I would be a lot more disposed to get the vaccine on campus if it were insured," she said.
Because of Women's Initiative's efforts, the HPV vaccine will be offered in the Student Health Center as soon as the vaccine shipments arrive.
In response to the group's success of getting the Student Health Center to administer future HPV vaccinations, Smith said she is hoping to make students more aware of HPV.
When asked to comment and provide details about how the vaccine will be administered, the Health Center referred The Eagle to its Web site, www.american.edu/ocl/healthcenter.
