SACRAMENTO – The Assembly Health Committee voted 10-6 Tuesdsay to approve Senate Bill 158, legislation by Sen. Patricia Wiggins (D-Santa Rosa) requiring health insurers and health maintenance organizations to cover the costs of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine (upon the referral of a doctor).

Wiggins represents Lake County.

HPV is the most common sexually-transmitted infection in the United States – with over 80 percent of females infected at some point in their lifetime.

For many women, HPV clears on its own without treatment. For others, it can cause cervical changes at the cellular level – dysplasia, genital warts and cervical cancer.

HPV infection has been identified as the primary cause of cervical cancer. More than 450,000 cases are diagnosed each year worldwide, resulting in nearly a quarter of a million deaths.

Cervical cancer was once the No. 1 cause of cancer deaths among women in the U.S.

For nearly five decades, the Pap test has been credited with decreasing cervical cancer mortality rates by 70 percent. Studies have shown that using the Pap test in conjunction with an HPV test is even more effective, increasing the accuracy of detecting cervical cancer to almost 100 percent.

On June 8, 2006, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first vaccine to protect girls and young women from certain types of HPV strains.

Gardasil, developed by Merck, is a three-dose quadrivalent vaccine – meaning that it protects against four strains of HPV, the ones most likely to cause cancer.

Another HPV vaccine, Cervarix by GlaxoSmithKline, was submitted for approval on March 29, 2007, to the FDA; however, approval is not expected before later this year.

The medical effectiveness of the existing vaccine, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC), suggests a corresponding 22 percent to 60 percent reduction in cervical cancer in the general population. Effectiveness should be highest for groups less likely to have been exposed to HPV, such as preadolescent girls and females without a history of sexual activity.

“The message for young women is to vaccinate, and continue regular screenings,” Sen. Wiggins said. “The combination of the vaccine and regular screenings will be a very powerful tool in reducing both cervical cancer and death from cervical cancer over the next decades.”

Wiggins’ legislation, which is sponsored by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, has already been approved by the Senate.