#Florida #mask #vaccine #DeSantis #Ladapo
“Florida will completely reject fear as a way of making policies, that has been something that has been, unfortunately, a centerpiece of health policies” —- Dr. Joseph Ladapo
Tuesday, Florida’s Governor DeSantis announced a new Surgeon General: Dr. Joseph Ladapo, a Harvard-trained PhD medical doctor who advocates an approach to the coronavirus pandemic that emphasizes protecting individual rights over community-based precautions.
Dr. Ladapo has expressed skepticism that vaccines could help end the pandemic, said Tuesday that he will “reject fear” as a public health strategy.
As Florida’s Surgeon General, Dr. Ladapo will oversee the state’s Department of Health, the Sunshine State’s lead agency on combating the coronavirus pandemic. He replaces Dr. Scott Rivkees, a pediatrician whose last day was Monday.
Dr. Ladapo indicated Tuesday that he’ll play a more prominent role than Dr. Rivkees.
Notably, since the beginning of the VirusCasedemic Dr. Ladapo has penned op-eds in the Wall Street Journal challenging main assertions by national health experts.
When asked about whether people should fear the vaccine, he said those fears are driven by a “climate of mistrust” in the public about the nation’s coronavirus response. That sentiment is aligned with that of Governor DeSantis since the start of the pandemic.
“That was a direct result of scientists, my colleagues, some of them, taking the science and basically misrepresenting it to fit their agendas,” Dr. Ladapo said. “This idea that people don’t get to make their own decisions on issues of health is wrong and it’s not something that we’re going to be about.”
When asked whether Florida should be promoting vaccines, Dr. Ladapo replied that too much emphasis had been placed on that approach.
“The state should be promoting good health, and vaccination isn’t the only path for that, has been treated almost like a religion, and that’s just senseless,” the new Florida SG said at Tuesday’s press conference.
Adding, that the state should be supporting many measures for good health: “vaccination, losing weight, exercising more and eating more fruits and vegetables.”
Governor DeSantis said the state now has a Top-flight doctor who will tell the truth about the science behind the pandemic.
“Telling the truth is important, and I think that’s what Dr. Ladapo understands,” he said. “You’ve got to tell people the truth, and you’ve got to let them make decisions.”
Dr. Joseph Ladapo was born in Nigeria and moved to the United States at the age of 5. His father was a microbiologist. He is married with three children, and he was recently granted a tenured professorship at the University of Florida. He faces confirmation by Florida’s Republican-controlled Senate.
Have a prosperous day, Keep the Faith!