ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Dr. Joseph Ladapo, whose credentials include two Harvard University degrees, says that requiring vaccinations for diseases like measles, polio and chickenpox amounts to government-imposed “slavery.” It’s far from the first time Florida’s surgeon general has cut against the medical establishment grain.

Ladapo, an appointee of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, made worldwide headlines this week by announcing Florida would seek to eliminate all mandated vaccinations for schoolchildren and others. He cast the immunization requirements, which date back decades and are considered a major global medical achievement that has saved millions of lives, as improper government intrusion in personal health decisions.

“Every last one is wrong and drips with disdain and slavery,” Ladapo said at a news conference with DeSantis this week. “Who am I, or anyone else, to tell you what you should put in your body? Who am I to tell you what your child should put in their body? I don’t have that right.”

So far, a concrete action plan for eliminating immunization mandates in Florida has not emerged, despite multiple requests by The Associated Press. Ladapo acknowledged some proposed changes would require the state Legislature to act. Educators and many health professionals are aghast.

“Removing policies that keep our children healthy creates unnecessary confusion and fear,” said Dr. Rana Alissa, president of the Florida Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. “Schools are tight-knit networks of children, educators, and families, making it easy for contagious diseases to spread.”

Ladapo, 46, emigrated from Nigeria to the U.S. at age five with his parents. He earned a degree in chemistry from Wake Forest University and then attended Harvard, where he got his medical degree and also a doctorate in health policy.

This is a well-trodden path for medical expertise. Ladapo was affiliated after Harvard with New York University and later UCLA, where his op-eds against the pandemic response were noticed by DeSantis, who tapped him as Florida surgeon general in 2021. Ladapo also got a professor position at the University of Florida medical school in the deal.

Like the governor, Ladapo raised questions about COVID-19 policies that forced people to wear masks and move education online, keep their distance from others and show proof of COVID vaccinations to attend public events, go to a restaurant or take a cruise. Ladapo also misrepresented studies to raise doubts about the mRNA vaccine, the studies’ authors said.

In a 2024 guidance statement, Ladapo’s Department of Health warned against using the COVID vaccine at all, contending that “the federal government has failed to provide sufficient data to support the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 boosters, or acknowledge previously demonstrated safety concerns associated with COVID-19 vaccines and boosters.” Those purported risks include respiratory tract infections, greater chance of autoimmune disease and cardiovascular problems.

Almost every major medical or public health organization disputed those assertions, including the Food and Drug Administration: “The challenge we continue to face is the ongoing proliferation of misinformation and disinformation about these vaccines which results in vaccine hesitancy that lowers vaccine uptake,” said the FDA statement, adding that the agency “respectfully disagrees with the Florida Surgeon General’s opinion.”

In his public comments, Ladapo makes clear he does not follow the guidance of government health experts who, in his view, don’t look at the full picture of how to tackle disease and improve public health. His agency did not respond to an Associated Press request for an interview.

“It’s just this sea of insanity,” he said this week. “People are going to have to choose a side. People have a right to make their own decisions, informed decisions.”

Ladapo’s focus on what he and DeSantis call “medical freedom” also fuels his skepticism about other long-established health policies, such as the FDA’s warning against consuming unpasteurized milk that can contain salmonella and other deadly bacteria, or the addition of fluoride in drinking water to promote healthy teeth.

“At what point are you free to make your own decisions?” DeSantis said this week. “We’ve done a lot over the years to really be on the right side of fighting against the hysteria.”

Ladapo has many critics in the public health realm and, increasingly, among politicians seeking to tie his unorthodox policies to DeSantis and other Republicans. U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson, a Democrat from South Florida, wants Ladapo ousted.

“Are we losing our minds? This is getting ridiculous and pathetic. Are we trying to kill millions of innocent children? Childhood vaccines save lives,” Wilson posted on social media this week. “Governor DeSantis must either remove Joseph Ladapo as Surgeon General or have him resign.”

There’s no indication that will happen. Ladapo appears to have full support from DeSantis and many conservatives cheer his willingness to buck the medical establishment, including what some see as the untoward influence of pharmaceutical companies.

“There are many brave people out there — moms & dads, doctors, scientists, and others — who have shown admirable courage in the fight for medical freedom,” Ladapo posted recently on the X social media platform. “Let’s continue. Much more work to be done.”

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