On Wednesday afternoon, Florida surgeon general Joseph Ladapo announced that he would advocate for ending all vaccine mandates in the state. This would include, among other things, the end of vaccine requirements for children in school. Within minutes of Ladapo’s announcement, members of a private anti-vaccine Facebook group called The Vaccine Free Child were rejoicing.
“Amen, stop the application of poison given to our precious children,” one member wrote, with another adding: “F yah! About time. Let the revolution begin.”
“I shouldn’t have to inject my kids with poison because you’ve been brainwashed to live in fear,” another member wrote, adding: “Hopefully more will follow Florida’s lead.”
Soon, group members from other parts of the country expressed their desire to have similar measures in their own states. “I am so jealous! I hope GA is next,” one member wrote, with another adding: “Ugh I wish Mississippi would do this but I don’t see it happening.” Another added: "Hopefully VA follows suit.”
While many members were celebrating, others were seeking medical help. That same day in the group, one member was seeking advice for treating whooping cough in their child. Responses included various vitamin supplements and “onion socks.” (Some people believe, without evidence, that sliced onions held close to the body absorb viruses and toxins.) Elsewhere in the group, members recommended an hourly administration of chlorine dioxide—a toxic bleach solution—to treat a baby’s possible case of meningitis. The groups don’t just boost anti-vaccine content; they also spread unproven and often dangerous medical advice.
The outpouring of joy in The Vaccine Free Child group echoed a celebratory mood online among the anti-vaccine community.
“This is how you make America healthy again. Will other states follow Florida's lead?” Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine group founded by US health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., posted to its X account. Moments later, the group hosted a live X Space with Dr. Memhet Oz, who heads up the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and Kennedy’s wife, actress Cheryl Hines. (Oz didn’t discuss the announcement from Florida.)
While the anti-vaccine community celebrated, public health experts slammed Florida’s decision, saying it will possibly endanger the lives of children who will be left unprotected from diseases like measles, mumps, chickenpox, polio, and hepatitis—all of which can be prevented by safe, affordable vaccines.
“There is short-term damage as this announcement alone will further undermine trust in vaccines around the world,” says Alex Morozov, an oncologist who has overseen hundreds of drug trials at multiple companies including Pfizer.
For Natalia Solenkova, a Miami-based critical care physician who has been fighting anti-vaccine disinformation for years, Ladapo’s announcement and the ensuing celebrations came as no surprise—and she believes the outcome will be just as predictable.
“Florida has been moving in this direction for several years,” says Solenkova. “We know from history that before vaccines, children died from measles, polio, whooping cough, and other vaccine-preventable diseases. Without vaccines, children will die again.”
With vaccination rates across the US already dropping in recent years, the impact of Florida’s proposed vaccine mandate ban could be devastating. “Long-term, we don’t know the impact. There is very little data on what happens when mandates are lifted. That is the danger of doing this so abruptly,” says Morozov. “Maybe vaccination rates will drop by 10 percent? Or maybe by 50 percent? Nobody knows. Higher drops could lead to devastating epidemics.”
While Kennedy and the Department of Health and Human Services have not commented publicly on Florida’s plan, it comes in the context of Kennedy undermining federal vaccine infrastructure since taking office in February. Kennedy and HHS did not respond to WIRED’s request for comment.
Kennedy “has been attacking not just public heath, notably vaccines, but health in general, pushing empty slogans and relying on a small clique of fringe scientists instead of top global experts,” says Morozov.
Kennedy, who has installed individuals with anti-vaccine beliefs and limited or no experience in public health administration to leadership positions at HHS, has also removed experienced officials from crucial roles in the agency. Just last week, Susan Monarez, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was fired after voicing concerns about the agency’s vaccine polices. On Wednesday, more than 1,000 HHS staff signed a letter demanding Kennedy resign.
Vaccine mandates related to children attending school have been in place in all 50 states since 1980. The Florida Department of Health currently requires children attending public schools and child care to be vaccinated against a range of diseases, including chickenpox, measles, and polio. It also offers medical and religious exemptions for parents who do not want to vaccinate their children.
Ladapo, who has long been a Covid vaccine skeptic and claimed without evidence that there are risks the Covid vaccine could contaminate human DNA, compared vaccine mandates to “slavery” during his press conference on Wednesday.
“People have a right to make their own decisions,” Ladapo said. “Who am I, as a government or anyone else, to tell you what you should put in your body? Our body is a gift from God. What you put into your body is because of your relationship with your body and your God.”
But the decision to remove the vaccine mandates is not up to Ladapo entirely. While he can remove some of the mandates the Florida Department of Health has approved, he added during his announcement that removing every mandate will require the Republican-controlled state legislature to enact legislation.
This didn’t stop anti-vaccine influencers and activists from celebrating.
“Congratulations Florida. I’ve been waiting to announce this for 17 years on this platform,” Erin Elizabeth, a well known anti-vaccine influencer with close ties to Kennedy, wrote on X.
In 2021, Elizabeth was named by the Center for Countering Digital Hate as a member of the Disinformation Dozen, a list of 12 superspreaders of false information responsible for 65 percent of anti-vaccine content posted on Facebook and Twitter at the time. Kennedy was named to the list as well. (Elizabeth did not respond to a request for comment.)
Others on the list celebrated, too: “Huge,” Christiane Northrup, a conspiracy theorist whose comments likened Covid-19 to “a plot involving Deep State brainwashing” and promoted QAnon, wrote on X. “What courage!!,” Kevin Jenkins wrote on X above a video of Ladapo’s announcement. Jenkins produced a film that was distributed by Kennedy’s Children’s Health Defense titled “Medical Racism: The New Apartheid,” which pushed disinformation about Black people getting vaccinated.
Simone Gold, the founder of the Covid-19-denial group America’s Frontline Doctors, who was jailed for her role in illegally entering the Capitol on January 6, wrote on X: “This is real leadership—defying Pharma’s coercion and restoring true medical freedom.” Gold was subsequently pardoned by President Trump earlier this year.
