• Measles outbreak raises concerns about drop in vaccinations

    Measles outbreak raises concerns about drop in vaccinations

    Mar 06, 2024 11:30 PM EDT

    ... are infected. They need to isolate for 21 days. And two is vaccination. By giving a very soft sell for both of those, I think Dr. Ladapo has the potential to do a lot of harm. William Brangham: I mean, we are talking about this in terms of a larger ...

  • Florida leaders working to eliminate all childhood vaccine mandates

    Florida leaders working to eliminate all childhood vaccine mandates

    Sep 03, 2025 05:44 PM EDT

    ... modeled after similar initiatives pushed at the federal level by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. On the vaccines, state Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo cast current requirements in schools and elsewhere as an “immoral” intrusion on people's rights bordering on “slavery,” and hampers parents' ability ...

  • As COVID cases rise, doctors worry about the consequences of misinformation

    As COVID cases rise, doctors worry about the consequences of misinformation

    Jan 18, 2024 05:35 PM EDT

    ... be the audience for anti-vaccination conspiracy theories. Some of those theories are amplified by political leaders, including on Dec. 6, when Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo made debunked claims about COVID vaccines and called for an end to their use. These messages follow a dangerous pattern, van der ...

  • Florida to recommend against COVID vaccines for healthy kids

    Florida to recommend against COVID vaccines for healthy kids

    Mar 07, 2022 05:58 PM EDT

    TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) -- Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo said Monday that the state will formally recommend against COVID-19 vaccinations for healthy children. Ladapo made the announcement at a roundtable event organized by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis that featured a group of doctors who criticized coronavirus lockdowns and mandate ...

  • Florida makes quarantine optional for exposed students

    Florida makes quarantine optional for exposed students

    Sep 22, 2021 11:28 PM EDT

    ... or stay in school if they are asymptomatic after being exposed to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. The new guidelines signed by Dr. Joseph Ladapo also tweaked the state's prohibition against school mask mandates, prompting an administrative law judge to dismiss a lawsuit against the old ...

  • Measles cases are rising in the U.S. Here’s why misinformation about the vaccine persists today

    Measles cases are rising in the U.S. Here’s why misinformation about the vaccine persists today

    Feb 23, 2024 01:56 PM EDT

    ... Ladapo continued to make statements that could appear to diminish, if not discredit, the use of vaccines. In a Feb. 20 letter to school officials, Ladapo wrote that Florida’s Department of Health “is deferring to parents or guardians to make decisions about school attendance,” citing the “high immunity rate ...

  • How the pandemic made it difficult for Americans to separate politics from public health

    How the pandemic made it difficult for Americans to separate politics from public health

    Dec 06, 2023 11:35 PM EDT

    Protestor: No forced COVID vaccines for adults or children. Judy Woodruff: Dr. Hotez points to sharpen rhetoric in the summer of 2021, shortly before the vaccines were approved for younger children, as a turning point. Tucker Carlson, Former FOX News Anchor: If the vaccine is effective, there is no reason ...