Texans For Kay

E-Mails From 2007 Show A Governor’s Office Working For Merck, Not Texans

Austin, TX – During Friday night’s debate, Rick Perry defended his order that all sixth-grade girls in Texas be vaccinated against HPV. Perry has claimed he was erring “on the side of life” with the HPV mandate, but from internal emails obtained by open records request, it looks like Perry was really erring on the side of Merck and their lobbyists. On this the third anniversary of Rick Perry’s HPV Executive Order, check out the internal Perry emails below and click here to see a comprehensive compilation of the Perry HPV emails:

FACT: Rick Perry Continues To Stand By His HPV Mandate, Which He Issued Three Years Ago Today:

In Last Friday’s Debate, Rick Perry Said He Still Believed His HPV Mandate Was The Right Thing To Do.  Len Cannon: “You signed an executive order in 2007 that mandated 6th grade girls be vaccinated against HPV. Your own party members in the Legislature were opposed to the idea. Looking back, was it an error in judgment on your part?”  Rick Perry: “I always stand for life. That issue was about being pro-life.”  Cannon: “So it was not an error?”  Perry: “No sir, not from my position. I'm about pro-life. And as a matter of fact, that piece of legislation was not mandatory in the sense of when you can say ‘no,’ something’s not mandatory. So I stand proudly by my pro-life position.”  (Texas Republican Primary Gubernatorial Debate, Dallas, TX, 1/29/10)

•    Click Here To Read Rick Perry's HPV Executive Order, Which He Issued On February 2, 2007

THE HPV EMAILS

Rick Perry’s Office Described The HPV Executive Order As A “Mandate”:

•    Read the backgrounder – “HPV Vaccine and the EO” – prepared by Rick Perry’s office that clearly describes Perry's Executive Order as a "mandate"
•    Read the 2/7/07 e-mail from the Governor’s Community Affairs Public Liaison referring to “the mandate”

Rick Perry’s HPV Mandate Came After Extensive Exchanges With Merck Lobbyists:

•    Read the 2/1/07 e-mail where one Perry Staffer said their HPV press release “sounds almost like a Merck commercial”
•    Read the 8/17/06 e-mail from Heidi McConnell, a Perry budget adviser, where she writes about meeting with "Merck representatives" on HPV
•    Read the 9/5/06 e-mail from the Director of Government Affairs at DSHS to a top Perry staffer with information "per our Merck representative"
•    Read the 10/12/06 e-mail from Perry's Assistant Budget Director about meeting with "the Merck folks" at lunch
•    Read the 10/31/06 e-mail exchange between Perry staffers and Merck lobbyists, which was forwarded as an "Update from Merck"
•    Read the 11/1/06 e-mail from Merck to Merck lobbyists that was forwarded to top Perry staffers
•    Read the 11/7/06 e-mail exchange between Perry’s office and Merck lobbyists concerning the cost of the HPV vaccine
•    Read the 11/17/06 e-mail exchange between Perry’s office and Merck lobbyists concerning the HPV vaccine cost and a phone message left by Mike Toomey for Perry staffers
•    Read the 11/27/06 e-mail from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to Dr. Charles Bell concerning work to provide an HPV cost estimate for “the Governor’s Office and representatives of the manufacturer”
•    Read the 12/8/06 e-mail from Perry’s office to Merck Lobbyists noting updated HPV vaccine cost estimates
•    Read the 1/31/07 e-mail from the Governor’s Community Affairs Public Liaison to top staffers asking for Merck assistance
•    Read the 2/5/07 e-mail from the Governor’s Office of Budget, Planning and Policy to Merck Lobbyist Lara Keel asking if she had “any thoughts” regarding the Texas Medical Association’s problems with the HPV mandate
•    Read the 2/6/07 e-mail from the Governor’s Community Affairs Public Liaison to top staffers saying that Merck had assured the Governor’s Office that there was an adequate stock of HPV vaccine to issue the mandate

Internal Perry Documents Show The HPV Executive Order Would Cost Taxpayers Tens Of Millions Of Dollars:

•    Read the backgrounder – “HPV Vaccine and the EO” – from Rick Perry’s office that estimates Perry's order would cost $50 million in its first year
•    Read the 2/5/07 e-mail from the Governor’s Office of Budget, Planning and Policy that revises up the annual cost to $71.7 million

Perry’s Office Had Difficulty Finding Doctors To Publicly Back The HPV Executive Order:

•    Read the 2/5/07 e-mail exchange between Perry staffers about the Texas Medical Association's concerns

Internal Perry Emails Show The HPV Executive Order Had Problems With The Opt-Out Provision:

•    Read the 2/4/07 e-mail exchange between members of Rick Perry’s senior staff when they realize the opt-out would have to be renewed every two years
•    Read the 2/6/07 e-mail exchange between Perry staffers in response to concerns that children in private and parochial schools would be "unable to opt their kids out of the vaccination mandates"
•    Read the 2/2/07 e-mail exchange where one Perry said of parents' concerns, "if they can't figure out the opt-out, then it must not be that important to them"

Perry’s Office Was Rushing To Issue The HPV Executive Order Before Valentine’s Day:

•    Read the 1/30/07 and 2/1/07 e-mail exchange about Valentine’s Day and the HPV mandate (featuring a picture of Cupid)

What Was Perry’s Real Reason For Bypassing The Legislature?

•    Read the 2/5/07 e-mail exchange where one Perry staffer asks for an answer he could "use in public" to  explain why Perry bypassed the Legislature

Public Outcry Against Perry’s HPV Mandate:

•    Read the e-mails that keep count of the number of calls Perry's office received in opposition to the HPV mandate - by 2/8/07 it was over 2,000