Committee advances bill requiring parental consent for minors to receive HPV vaccine amid sharp disagreement

Senate File 120, a measure requiring parental consent for a minor to receive the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, was advanced by the Senate Health and Human Services Committee and will move to the Senate calendar.

Sponsor Senator Salmon opened by saying, "This bill requires parental consent for a minor to receive the HPV vaccine." Opposition was expressed by Senator Petersen, who said she did not sign the subcommittee report and urged the committee to vote no. Petersen described HPV vaccination as "the number 1 preventing cancer vaccination" and warned that requiring parental consent could deny access to life-saving vaccination for children who were abused or otherwise unable to obtain parental permission. "HPV vaccination saves lives, and I believe we should be doing all we can to make sure that young Iowans have access to the vaccination," Petersen said.

Senator Zimmer also spoke, saying he could not support any bill that would harm a student even in a small probability and indicated concern over potential harms to students. Senator Salmon defended the bill by saying parental consent is a standard for other vaccines on the Iowa childhood immunization schedule and the CDC schedule and argued minors lack the maturity to weigh long-term risks and benefits.

A recorded roll call was requested; the clerk recorded "11 yeses to 4 noes" and the bill advanced to the Senate calendar under committee rule 40. The committee record shows significant policy disagreement between members over public-health consequences and parental rights.