GOWANDA — Known as the cervical cancer prevention drug, Gardasil, the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, was approved by the FDA in 2006 and has since been administered to millions of boys and girls as young as 11 years old. Giving a child the vaccine, which is believed to be most effective prior to the onset of sexual activity, is a choice made by parents in collaboration with their child’s physician. However, new legislation proposed in the State Senate may make Gardasil one of the state-mandated vaccines required for public school attendance.

At a recent Gowanda Board of Education meeting, district residents and parents Megan Cook and Mary Habermehl spoke out against this mandate and encouraged board members to do their due diligence before the bill is up for a vote January.

Both Cook and Habermehl explained that they are not against vaccination, as all of their children have received the state-mandated vaccines in order to attend Gowanda Central School. They are concerned that the state is taking an important decision away from parents and their children’s doctors and putting it in the hands of politicians.

“HPV is a sexually-transmitted disease that you cannot get from toilet seats, holding hands, hugging or sharing food utensils,” Habermehl pointed out.

“Since schools are not places where students are engaged in such activities (as to contract HPV), the spread of HPV is not considered a public health risk in this setting.”

Habermehl went on to name the documented side effects of the vaccine, which she said include ovarian failure, paralysis, seizures, multiple sclerosis, stroke, heart attack, nerve damage and even death. She also shared a document written by Dr. Bernard Dalbergue, a former Merck physician who worked on this vaccine.

In Dalbergue’s words, “I predict that Gardasil will become the greatest medical scandal of all time,” Habermehl read. She said his letter noted that Gardasil apparently has no proven effect on cervical cancer and that the primary purpose of the vaccine is to generate profit for manufacturers.

“My kids are fully vaccinated,” Habermehl said. “We appreciate how vaccines have eradicated disease … but can we say that our children are more healthy than they were 30 years ago because of the 72 mandated vaccines given before the age of 18? We don’t want politicians to make these decisions. These are for parents and the physicians we trust in the care of our children.”

Habermehl shared a letter from an elderly district resident who was unable to attend the meeting. This resident has nine great-grandchildren in the Gowanda school district. “I plead with you as the school board to stand with us as citizens,” Habermehl read. “We want to go against this mandate of HPV inoculation. Our children are ours and the decisions that we make medically with them are ours and their physicians.” The resident’s letter referenced thalidomide, which was prescribed to pregnant women to treat morning sickness in the 1950s and caused many lethal malformations in infants or congenital malformations, such as missing limbs.

Habermehl also shared a copy of a letter written by the superintendent of the Clarence Central School District to area legislators sharing his opposition to the vaccine mandate. She urged board of education members to contact Gowanda’s legislators, including District 147 Assemblyman David DePietro, whom Habermehl said has already been vocal about the ineffectiveness of the vaccine.

Cook, who has three children enrolled at Gowanda, is a teacher in another local school district. “As a parent, I’ve chosen to give my children all the mandatory vaccines,” she said. Cook noted that in addition to Gardasil, there is talk of making the flu vaccine a state mandate, too. She pointed out that schools will incur additional expenses due to costs associated with maintaining larger, more complex state registries for vaccinated students.

“I’ve talked to multiple school nurses at other districts and there is a serious concern that the healthcare will diminish based on them having to push papers for vaccines,” Cook stated. “As school board members, you are voted in to protect those rights of our kids. This is an opportunity for you to speak for the citizens of your community and make it known to our state that you don’t support that a vaccine for a disease that cannot be spread in our schools be mandated in order for children to attend school.”

Both parents said that they believe the instances of homeschooling will increase if the bill is approved in January. They shared a letter that includes 28 signatures of district residents who couldn’t attend the meeting but opposed the proposed bill to mandate Gardasil.

Board member David Barnes asked the parents what board of education members could do, since the decision will be made at the state level — not the local district level. Habermehl said that many districts are writing letters to Gov. Andrew Cuomo to advise against the bill and share the results of multiple studies that show the adverse effects of the vaccine.

“If they’re going to mandate that the kids get it, they’ll mandate that all staff get it,” Habermehl warned. “It’s really going to get big fast, and that is something that David DePietro has been sharing. There are other districts throughout the state who have been writing letters.”

Board President Mark Nephew thanked the parents for their time and said that the board would look into the matter further. The next meeting of the Gowanda Board of Education is Wednesday, Dec. 18 at 6:30 p.m. in the middle school library.