Dispatch from the Culture War: Virginia's Failed HPV Vaccination Mandate

coverage seems to have become overshadowed. This paper will inquire into what makes Gardasil different from other vaccines, and how that impacts its administration. Part I will describe the specifics of the HPV vaccine: how it works and how Virginia decided to promote its usage. Part II will examine the ways in which jurisdictions have traditionally understood vaccination policy, and contrast it with the ways in which they have handled the HPV vaccine.

Part III will examine the disadvantages of continuing the mandate's ineffective political war of attrition, and suggest a coalition-building strategy to effect policy that honors communal values and meaningfully increases access to the vaccine.