Awareness campaign: Anyone who can get vaccinated against HPV for free

The expensive vaccine has been available free of charge in Austria from ages nine to 21 since February. “Almost 80,000 vaccine doses were administered during this period” – almost twice as many as in the same period last year, Health Minister Johannes Rauch (Greens) reported on Monday.

According to Rauch, there is still room for improvement in the numbers. “Where we are not good is the vaccination rate,” emphasized the doctor Paul Sevelda, President of the Austrian Cancer Aid. This is estimated at 40 to 50 percent in the age group for the free HPV vaccination. There is little data in the age groups beyond this, so the goal is for the HPV vaccination to be documented in the e-vaccination certificate.

Austria has committed to the World Health Organization (WHO) to achieve an HPV vaccination rate of 90 percent for girls up to 15 years of age by 2030, said Sevelda.

You can see more about the new information campaign in the video:

Infection goes unnoticed

About 80 percent of all men and women become infected with HPV through skin contact during their lifetime, explained Rauch. The infection itself goes unnoticed, but can cause cervical cancer and other types of cancer such as anal and penile cancer or oropharyngeal cancer. In addition to these potentially fatal tumors, certain types of HPV also cause annoying genital warts. The HPV vaccination can prevent these diseases by 95 percent, assured Sevelda. HPV causes 6,000 procedures annually in Austria, including genital warts and conizations.

Appeal to parents

According to Rauch, the campaign is aimed at legal guardians on the one hand. The aim is to prevent children from being withheld vaccinations out of fear or ignorance. In addition, young people aged 14 and over should feel directly addressed to get the vaccination, which is offered free of charge from the age of nine. From the age of 14 onwards, in Austria you can decide to get a vaccination on your own responsibility – even without your parents’ consent, emphasized Rauch.

With the new campaign, one million euros will be invested in information and education over the next few weeks, which “is necessary,” emphasized the Health Minister. The subjects would be highly visible in public spaces and on social media and sometimes also in schools. “It won’t be done with a campaign,” said Sevelda. He referred to the high vaccination rate for tick vaccination (TBE) in Austria, where there have been numerous campaigns. Society needs to unite so that everyone is aware of how important the HPV vaccination is “and how much we can use it to protect our children from having to suffer from these diseases.”

“It is important that there is this information,” said the chairwoman of the Federal Youth Council, Rihab Toumi, at the press conference. Only those who have information “can decide whether to take advantage of the vaccination.” In a press release, the Socialist Youth (SJ) called for the age limit for free HPV vaccinations to be extended “for everyone under 30”.

• More information about vaccination

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