30 Oct HPV Vaccination Rate Low for Girls Under Both Commercial and Medicaid Plans
Shannon Stokley MPH
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Shannon Stokley, MPH
Epidemiologist in the
CDC Immunization Services Division
Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: To determine whether the recommended HPV vaccination series is currently being administered to adolescents with health insurance, CDC and the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) assessed 2013 data from the Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS). The HEDIS HPV Vaccine for Female Adolescents performance measure evaluates the proportion of female adolescent members in commercial and Medicaid health plans who complete the recommended HPV vaccination series by age 13 years. In 2013, in the United States, the median HPV vaccination coverage level for female adolescents among commercial and Medicaid plans was 12% and 19%, respectively (ranges = 0%–34% for commercial plans, 5%–52% for Medicaid plans). The results of this study indicate that there are significant opportunities for improvement as HPV vaccination coverage among female adolescents was low for both commercial and Medicaid plans.
Medical Research: What should clinicians and patients take away from your report?
Response: HPV vaccination is cancer prevention, but HPV vaccination coverage by age 13 years is low among girls with health insurance. Increasing delivery of HPV vaccination at the recommended ages of 11 or 12 years will help ensure adolescents are protected against cancers caused by HPV infections. CDC encourages clinicians to recommend HPV vaccination the same way and same day they recommend other vaccines for adolescents.
Medical Research: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this study?
Response: This study provides a baseline to help us understand what health plans may do to support HPV vaccination, including understanding the barriers and facilitators for vaccination. Characterizing the strategies and best practices used by higher performing plans will be important for increasing HPV vaccination in the U.S.
Citation:
October 30, 2015 / 64(42);1185-9
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Shannon Stokley, MPH (2015). HPV Vaccination Low for Girls Covered Under Both Commercial and Medicaid Plans
Last Updated on October 30, 2015 by Marie Benz MD FAAD