Yes. Visit the Immunizations webpage for clinic locations and hours.

The HPV vaccine is recommended for 11 to 12 year-olds, and can be given to people as young as nine. The vaccine is also recommended for 13 – 26 year olds who have not yet received or completed the vaccine series.

These recommendations have been proposed by the ACIP, a national group of experts that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on vaccine issues, and are now being considered by CDC.

Ideally, people should get the vaccine before they are sexually active. This is because the vaccine is most effective in people who have not yet acquired any of the four HPV types covered by the vaccine. People who have not been infected with any of those four HPV types will get the full benefits of the vaccine.

People who are sexually active may also benefit from the vaccine. But they may get less benefit from the vaccine since they may have already acquired one or more HPV type(s) covered by the vaccine.

Few young people are infected with all four of these HPV types. So they would still get protection from those types they have not acquired. Currently, there is no test available to tell if someone has had any or all of these four HPV types.

The vaccine has been widely tested in people 9 to 26 years old. But research on the vaccine’s safety and efficacy has only recently begun with people older than 26 years. The FDA will consider licensing the vaccine for these people once research shows that it is safe and effective for them.

The vaccine is not recommended for pregnant women. There has been limited research looking at vaccine safety for pregnant women and their unborn babies.

So far, studies suggest that the vaccine has not caused health problems during pregnancy, nor has it caused health problems for the infant– but more research is still needed. For now, pregnant women should complete their pregnancy before getting the vaccine.

If a woman finds out she is pregnant after she has started getting the vaccine series, she should complete her pregnancy before finishing the three-dose series.

The length of vaccine protection (immunity) is usually not known when a vaccine is first introduced. So far, studies have followed women for five years and found that they are still protected. More research is being done to find out how long protection will last, and if a booster vaccine is needed years later.

Because the vaccine does not protect against all types of HPV, it will not prevent all cases of cervical, penile, and anal cancer or genital warts. About 30 percent of cervical cancers will not be prevented by the vaccine, so it will be important for women to continue getting regular Pap tests.

Also, the vaccine does not prevent about 10 percent of genital warts—nor will it prevent other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). So it will still be important for sexually active adults to reduce exposure to HPV and other STIs.

No studies have shown whether or not one or two doses protect as well as getting three doses, so it’s very important to get all three doses.

No. There is no thimerosal or mercury in the HPV vaccine. It is made up of proteins from the outer coat of the virus (HPV). There is no infectious material in this vaccine.

While some insurance companies may cover the vaccine, others may not. Most large insurance plans usually cover the costs of recommended vaccines. However, there is often a short lag-time after a vaccine is recommended, before it is available and covered by health plans.

The Southern Nevada Health District participates in the Vaccines for Children (VFC) federal health program which covers the HPV vaccine. The VFC program provides free vaccines to children and teens under 19 years old, who are uninsured, Medicaid-eligible, American Indian, Alaska Native.

Yes. There are three reasons why women will still need regular cervical cancer screening.

1. 1. The vaccine will NOT protect against all types of HPV that cause cervical cancer, so vaccinated women will still be at risk for some cancers.
   2. Some women may not get all required doses of the vaccine (or they may not get them at the right times), so they may not get the vaccine’s full benefits.
   3. Women may not get the full benefit of the vaccine if they receive it after they’ve already acquired one of the four HPV types.

No. People do not need to get an HPV test or PAP test to find out if they should get the vaccine. An HPV test or a PAP test can tell that a person may have HPV, but these tests cannot tell the specific HPV type(s). Even people with one HPV type could get protection from the other vaccine HPV types they have not yet acquired.

Visit the HPV webpage for more information on HPV and cervical cancer. Visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for more information on HPV Vaccine.