School board trustee calling for free HPV vaccine for boys
Posted September 17, 2019 8:27 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
NEW WESTMINSTER (NEWS 1130) — The HPV vaccine is free for girls, so why isn’t it the same for boys?
That’s what a trustee on the New Westminister School Board wants to know.
Danielle Connelly says the vaccine is available for boys, but only those born in 2006 or later. Now, she wants the school board to send a letter to the B.C. Ministry of Health asking them to make the HPV Vaccine free for boys and men aged nine to 26.
“So I have two sons, one 13 and one 15. My 13-year-old got it in school. My 15-year-old didn’t. So now, we’re on the hook to pay for that which could cost upwards of 500 dollars,” she says.
Connelly says some parents might not be able to afford the costs, and people should have the right to look after their own health.
“I think there’s a huge need. The science behind this is showing that these types of cancers related to the HPV virus are on the rise. I think we owe it to these young men to offer them the same opportunity to protect themselves,” she says. “We should be providing this vaccine equally,”
Girls and women can get it free, if they begin the series of vaccines before they turn 19, and finish them before they turn 26.
The board will debate sending the letter Sept. 24.
