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Florida surgeon general says no data projections before proposing end to school vaccine mandates
Ladapo confesses policy affecting 3.3 million students has zero scientific backing·September 7, 2025
Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo said on CNN on Sept. 7, 2025, that his office did not run projections before proposing to end school vaccine mandates. He had earlier, on Sept. 3 in Valrico, likened mandates to 'slavery.' The administration announced plans to eliminate requirements, but the changes were announced and not finalized that day. Several peer‑reviewed studies and CDC reports show pertussis vaccine protection is high soon after vaccination but wanes over years; that evidence informs public‑health projections many officials rely on.
Key facts
On Sept. 7, 2025 Joseph Ladapo told CNN's Jake Tapper his department did not perform projections of how removing mandates would change disease incidence.
On Sept. 3, 2025 Ladapo said at a Valrico event: 'Every last one of them is wrong and drips with disdain and slavery.' He repeated that the state would work to end all school vaccine mandates.
Peer‑reviewed studies estimate DTaP effectiveness near 95–98% within a year after the fifth dose and about 71% by five years. The CDC's technical summaries document that vaccine protection wanes and that mandates and boosters are tools to control outbreaks.
The administration announced intent to remove mandates
Some rules can be rescinded by the Florida Department of Health
Other mandates are set in statute and would need legislative action The announcement did not by itself repeal all mandates.
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