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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR Stewart
ORIGINAL DATE
LAST UPDATED
HJM 39
SHORT TITLE
HPV SCREENING & ADVISORY PANEL
SB
ANALYST Duarte
APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)
Appropriation
Recurring
or Non-Rec
Fund
Affected
FY07
FY08
NFI
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
LFC Files
Responses Received From
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
House Joint Memorial 39 requests the support of initiatives by the Department of Health for
improvements in Human Papillomavirus screening. It also supports the formation of an HPV
advisory panel in order to better maintain cervical precancers. The memorial supports the efforts
by the DOH in improving the screening and maintenance of HPV screening. House Joint
Memorial 39 also recognizes the newly available HPV vaccine and would like to vaccinate all
young women between the ages of nine and fourteen.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
The Department of Health will absorb any costs with there current funding.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
According to House Joint Memorial 39 cervical cancer affects two-thirds of women in New
Mexico under the age of fifty-five. Cervical cancer is preventable and curable through early
detection and pre-cancer screening, unlike many other cancers. Current prevention programs
within New Mexico have resulted in a decrease in the incidence of cervical cancer in the women
pg_0002
House Joint Memorial 39 – Page
2
of New Mexico. Currently, Hispanics and Native Americans have a higher mortality rate in
comparison to non-Hispanic white women. This is due in part to several issues surrounding lack
of screening, access to healthcare, immigrant status, and other social and financial disparities.
Twenty high-risk genital human papillomaviruses have been identified as cause of nearly all
cervical precancers. Forty percent if women between the ages of eighteen and forty have tested
positive for human papillomavirus. Recently a vaccine has become available that protects
women from three types of cancer causing human papillomavirus, although there are several
other types that are not covered by the vaccine. The vaccine would be especially affective for
young women between the ages of nine and fourteen, who may be sexually naïve. Making this
vaccine available to all women in New Mexico despite financial and social disparities would
help decrease the occurrence of cervical cancer in women. Although the vaccine offers
protection, it cannot be used in lieu of human papillomavirus testing and pre-cancer screening.
House Joint Memorial 39 supports the ongoing efforts of the Department of Health in
maintaining the surveillance of cervical precancers and would also support collaboration
between statewide immunization systems and human papillomavirus programs. This memorial
supports the creation of an advisory panel consisting of experts in the fields of human
papillomavirus testing and screening, school-based health representatives, representatives of
immunization programs, healthcare advocacy groups, the New Mexico breast and cervical cancer
early detection program, and the public health division, within the Department of Health.
Collaboration between the New Mexico health policy commission and the human papillomavirus
is also supported within this memorial. Finally, this memorial would like a research agenda to be
created by the advisory panel that would identify and study the disparities and a more effective
delivery of primary and secondary cervical cancer interventions, that would in turn improve the
health of the women in New Mexico.
CD/mt