Last fall, Duke Student Health Center began offering vaccines that protect women against the human papillomavirus, after the Federal Drug Administration approved the vaccine in June.
And Lindsey Bickers Bock, Student Health health education specialist, said the vaccine has been popular among Duke students since it was first introduced.
During the fall semester Bickers Bock said that approximately 250 students received the first in a series of three shots, and 150 received a second shot.
Each student who receives the vaccine from Student Health must also attend a clinic about the vaccine, the vaccine's effects and the disease, which causes cervical cancer and is the second-leading cancer killer of women worldwide.
"Anytime anybody gets a medical procedure, there is a requirement that we do some education," Bickers Bock said. "For the HPV vaccine it's an easy way to learn about what human papillomavirus is and what the vaccine is like. And if you decide to, you can get the vaccine right there."
Bickers Bock added that more women than seen at the Student Health Center have been receiving the shot at home through their pediatricians and doctors.
The vaccine is available at Duke for $140 per shot.
Recent approval of the HPV vaccine has also led to the introduction of legislation in at least 30 states that will either require education for the public about HPV and its vaccine, or to fund or require the vaccine.
New Hampshire's health department has a several-million-dollar fund it will use to provide the vaccine free of charge to girls under 18.
In February, by mandate of Gov. Rick Perry, Texas became the first state to require all girls entering sixth grade to receive the vaccine.
The vaccine, however, is not currently required in North Carolina.
"There are about five shots that the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] has recommended that we do not have the money to cover with our universal vaccine program," said Debbie Crane, director of public affairs at the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.
The HPV vaccine is one of those five.
"If you're receiving Medicaid or you're on a private health plan, the vaccine is covered, but those kids who aren't wouldn't be getting the shot," Crane said.
Despite the lack of legislation regarding the HPV vaccine, the third annual report about state cervical health issued by Women in Government, a bi-partisan, non-profit organization of women state legislators, reports North Carolina as a top-performing state in screening and placing legislative priority on cervical health issues.
Merck & Co., the only company currently producing the vaccine, is opening a new $300-million manufacturing plant in Durham.
In the future, North Carolina may have lower cost options for children not covered by private health insurance or Medicaid.
Though nothing is official yet, Crane said the state is discussing with private insurers-the largest of which is Blue Cross Blue Shield-a concept to allow the state to collect the estimated $35 to $40 million the private companies are already spending on customers covered for the shots.
Crane added that the money would be supplemented by an equal amount of federal funding-a sum that would give the state enough vaccinations for every child.
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