Oct. 10--DALLAS, Tx -- Caroline Hess isn't conflicted when it comes to the Gardasil vaccine to protect against cervical cancer.
"I think it should be mandated," the TCU freshman, said.
Hess says her mother made her get the shot when she was 14, but Hess says she supports minors being about to get the vaccination for HPV, with or without a parent's approval.
"I don't believe in going behind a parent's back, but if a girl wants it and the parent's don't then I think the child should be able to get it on her own."
That could soon be the reality in California, where a proposed law would allow underage girls and boys, as young as 12, to get the vaccine without parental consent. Authorities say the American college of Obstetricians and Gynecologist is supporting the measure.
"I think the vaccine is safe and I would recommend it to all young patients," Fort Worth OB/GYN, Dr. Gladys Tse, said.
Dr. Tse says the Gardasil controversy is creating a lot of buzz about the high-profile vaccine, that guards against the sexually transmitted, human papillomavirus, linked to cervical cancer.
While, Dr. Tse says she supports the use of the vaccine to protect young women, she says children often aren't ready to make that decision without a parent.
"We want there to be a dialogue. I can't think of any health care provider who wouldn't want a parent's consent."
Parents are already feeling apprehensive about the Gardasil vaccine, after Governor Rick Perry called for a mandate to vaccinate all 11-year old girls in Texas. The plan was defeated, but still dogs Perry on the presidential trail.
"Anytime the government wants to be a substitute for parents, then we have a problem," Kyleen Wright, with Texans For Life, said.
Wright doesn't want to see a domino effect, with the idea spilling over into other states and she says, intruding on parental rights.
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