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Ron DeSantis’s Surgeon General Tells Parents It’s Okay to Send Their Unvaccinated Kids to School Amid Measles Outbreak
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In 2021, Ron DeSantis appointed Joseph Ladapo the surgeon general of Florida, after Ladapoâs op-eds questioning mask-wearing, COVID-19 vaccines, and other public health measures caught the governorâs eye. In the ensuing years, Ladapo has recommended children should not receive the COVID vaccine, has âweaponize[d] bad science to spread anti-vaccine disinformation as official policy,â and has personally âaltered key findings in [a] study on Covid-19 vaccine safety.â Now, Ladapo is bringing his medical point of view to a measles outbreak that he appears happy to let explode on his watch.
In a letter sent to parents this week, Ladapo alerted them to a cluster of measles cases that had been identified in Manatee Bay Elementary School and wrote that âit is normally recommended that individuals without history of prior infection or vaccination stay home for up to 21 days,â as âup to 90% of individuals without immunity will contract measles if exposed.â Having said that? Heâs cool with people sending their unvaccinated children to school, despite that whole thing about 90% of unvaccinated people likely contracting the disease. The Florida Department of Health, Ladapo said, âis deferring to parents or guardians to make decisions about school attendance.â
Not surprisingly, health experts who actually believe in science have said such guidance is wildly irresponsible, with at least one blaming Ladapo for the outbreak. âThe reason why there is a measles outbreak in Florida schools is because too many parents have not had their children protected by the safe and effective measles vaccine,â John P. Moore, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Weill Cornell Medical College, told The Washington Post. âAnd why is that? Itâs because anti-vaccine sentiment in Florida comes from the top of the public health food-chain: Joseph Ladapo.â Dr. Ben Hoffman, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, told the outlet the guidance from Florida âruns counter to everything I have ever heard and everything that I have read. It runs counter to our policy. It runs counter to what the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] would recommend.â (As the Post notes, measles can cause severe health complications, including death.)
Patsy Stinchfield, president of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, told the Post the outbreak will become a major threat to the community if unvaccinated people whoâve been exposed to the disease donât follow health recommendations like staying at home during the time they may be contagious. In other words, things could get a lot worse if people listen to the Florida surgeon general.
Ladies and gentlemen, the modern Republican Party
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Bess Levin
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