Not everyone is pleased with the announcement from Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo.
Jill Roberts, associate professor at the University of South Florida’s College of Public Health, told Axios that this is “devastating” news.
"You're going to leave kids susceptible to diseases that are deadly and have lifelong consequences," said Roberts.
Governor Ron DeSantis said that the state Department of Health can end vaccine mandates not written into state law, but any others will require action by the Legislature.
DeSantis acknowledged that neither he nor Ladapo has spoken with state lawmakers about pursuing those changes.
But the state’s effort is to get rid of mandates, not the vaccines themselves.
State statutes currently require school children to get immunized against seven illnesses: polio, diphtheria, measles, whooping cough, mumps and tetanus, Axios reported.
During his announcement, Ladapo said people have a right to make their own, informed decisions.
“If you want to put whatever different vaccines in your body, God bless you, I hope you make an informed decision,” said Ladapo. “If you don’t want to put whatever vaccines in your body, God bless you, I hope you make an informed decision. That’s how it should be.”
Brian Hooker, Ph.D., chief scientific officer of Children’s Health Defense, told AFN he is “very encouraged by this action” in Florida.
“He (Ladapo) has basically put the decision-making in the hands of the parents of these children, these schoolchildren,” said Hooker. “Essentially what he’s done is he’s eliminated any type of mandate that would, you know, coerce or force children to be vaccinated.”
Hooker would like to see other states follow suit.
“The parents can have frank discussions with their practitioners and basically take the mandates out of the states’ hands and not have the state involved in this medical decision making.”
