If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, again. That’s exactly what the giant drug company Merck has done; it changed its lobbying target and now has the federal government mandating injections of its vaccine for legal immigrants, ensuring a continuous return on its product development investment.

When efforts to have state governments mandate the injection of school-age girls with its vaccine, which can cause serious side effects, backfired, Merck simply changed its target and easily succeeded in getting the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to agree to inject Gardasil into every “age appropriate” female who wishes to become a legal permanent resident of the United States. If the citizenship applicant cannot prove she has completed the series of injections, she will not be granted citizenship. Gardasil is intended to prevent infections of the Human Papiloma Virus (HPV). HPV plays a significant role in the development of cervical cancer.

Given the nature of the virus, the female-forced vaccinations are rather sexist. This does not mean that male vaccinations should be mandated as well, although that’s next on Merck’s marketing agenda. But if HPV were truly a serious public health concern, it would behoove immigration authorities to test males for the easily sexually transferred disease and reject admittance to all who have HPV and who might seek healthcare services to treat the condition at taxpayer expense. And with Gardasil licensed for use in still-developing 9-year-old little girls, it is also an abusive health risk for child immigrants.

A recent New England Journal of Medicine report raises serious concerns about the need for a vaccine to treat HPV in the first place. It seems that HPV infections are cleared up by the immune system. Even the CDC’s own website offers these observational gems as facts: 

• Most people with HPV do not develop symptoms or health problems.
• HPV usually goes away on its own, without causing health problems. An infection today will most likely not be there a year or two from now.
• In most cases, the body fights off HPV naturally.
• Most types of HPV don’t lead to cancer.
• Women can protect themselves from cervical cancer by getting regular Pap tests.

Because Gardasil was granted a license by the FDA for use before results from clinical trials were reported, the NEJM report says that essential items would have needed decades of observation of large numbers of women before a clear picture of the effectiveness and safety of the vaccine could be determined. Some questions raised in the report are:

Will the vaccine ultimately prevent not only cervical lesions, but also cervical cancer and death? How long will protection conferred by the vaccine last? Since most HPV infections are easily cleared by the immune system, how will vaccination affect natural immunity against HPV, and with what implications? How will the vaccine affect preadolescent girls, given that the only trials conducted in this cohort have been on the immune response?

Even though in the business of health and despite the information on their own fact sheets, the CDC, who outlined the terms of the new requirements for the USCIS, has attempted to minimize the serious effects, some fatal, of Gardasil on VAERS (Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System). This is a voluntary reporting system the CDC manages with admittedly only ten percent of adverse reactions or fatalities being reported. Judicial Watch managed to obtain documents from the FDA detailing very frightening adverse reactions that simply report facts:

•  A 20 year old female with no medical history reported, who on 01-APR-2008 was vaccinated with a dose of Gardasil...The patient died four days after...patient sought unspecified medical attention. An autopsy was performed which ruled out suicide and anything suspicious. The cause of death is currently unknown. VAERS ID: 310262-1 (D)
• A 23-year-old female…who on 31-JAN-2008 was vaccinated with her 1st dose of Gardasil...the patient experienced anaphylactic shock 2 minutes after vaccination characterized by a brief loss of consciousness...respiratory arrest, eyes rolled upwards, blurred vision and greyish skin tone...Anaphylactic shock was considered to be immediately life-threatening. VAERS ID: 304739-1 (S)
•  Cold sweat, Fall, Foaming at mouth, Grand mal convulsion, Immediate post-injection reaction....Pt [patient, 14-year-old female] received vaccine, took 6 steps, fell to the ground unconscious and had a 60 sec grand mal seizure then regained consciousness. [Blood pressure] after seizure 60/40 pale clammy skin. [Patient] had bit her tongue and had foam around her mouth. VAERS ID: 305259-1 (S)
• A female patient who on an unknown date was vaccinated with a dose of Gardasil. Subsequently, the patient experienced a coma and is now paralyzed. At the time of this report, the patient's outcome was unknown. VAERS ID: 303188-1

Despite the uncertainties and risks, the meteoric rise of Gardasil has been truly astounding. You have to hand it to Merck’s marketing department for a marketing campaign that has had the news media and the government salivating in their excitement to help promote and now force Gardasil's usage on consumers. Seems many of the popular talking heads and Network doctors were highly emotionally and effusive in their praise of a highly questionable product:

• ABC’s Charles Gibson told viewers “this breakthrough couldn’t come soon enough,” on the June 8, 2006 “World News Tonight.”
• NBC’s Brian Williams called Gardasil a “triumph in science and medicine” on June 8, 2006. He referred to Gardasil as “the first vaccine to prevent cancer” on Dec. 28, 2006, and urged parents to get their children vaccinated in many “Today” appearances.
• NBC’s “Today” show co-host Meredith Vieira declared that it “could save your teenager’s life some day” on Sept. 15, 2006. She also told viewers Gardasil was one of the three vaccines kids “need.” Dr. Nancy Snyderman, NBC’s chief medical editor, downplayed criticism of the expense of Gardasil, calling the $360 cost “the best investment you can make.”
• For “The Early Show” on CBS, Dr. Emily Senay said Jan. 1, 2007, that the “top medical breakthrough [of 2006] has to be the cancer vaccine for cervical cancer, Gardasil.”

Sherry Baker, a widely published author whose work often focuses on health concerns and who wrote the article on NaturalNews reporting the new mandate, noted: “Unfortunately, the new U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services ruling demanding HPV vaccinations of new permanent legal permanent residents of this country is another worrisome step toward government mandated vaccinations that reduce individual health choice and freedom.”

We couldn’t have said it better ourselves. 

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