Florida is set to become the first U.S. state to strip all school vaccine mandates, a move experts warn could worsen health disparities and leave children — especially those in Black communities — more vulnerable to disease.
Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo announced the plan this week, saying the state Department of Health would work with Governor Ron DeSantis’ office to repeal mandates encoded in state law.
“Every last one of them is wrong and drips with disdain and slavery,” Ladapo said.
Florida officials plan to try to end all childhood vaccine mandates, labeling it as a move for “medical freedom,” while some health experts and educators warn it could increase disease risk and disrupt school safety.
Health equity at risk
If fully enacted, Florida’s decision could remove critical public health protections that currently help reduce disease in underserved communities.
Health experts point to disparities in vaccination coverage. In fact, national data show Black children (66.5 percent) are significantly less likely than white children (75.5 percent) to have received routine childhood vaccines by age 35 months.
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analysis of children born during 2020–2021 points to persistent gaps: non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic children had lower coverage of key vaccines like DTaP, PCV, rotavirus, and influenza than white children.
In Florida, kindergarten vaccination rates are already below the national average, with just 88.7 percent of kindergartners vaccinated in 2025, compared with more than 92 percent nationally, The Associated Press reported.
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Exemptions rising amid concern
Florida also saw a rise in religious exemptions—6.4 percent statewide, and up to 15 percent in some counties—raising alarm among public health officials. Dr. Richard Besser, president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and former acting CDC director, called the plan “frightening.”
“As a pediatrician, and as a parent, it’s absolutely frightening, the idea that children could go to school and be unvaccinated,” he told ABC News. “That puts them at risk and others around them who may have underlying medical conditions.”
Why this matters for Black families
Black children are at higher risk of hospitalization from infectious diseases. School vaccine mandates help reduce that risk. Removing them could leave Black children — who often face barriers to health care, including transportation, insurance gaps, and fewer pediatric services — more exposed to outbreaks like measles and whooping cough.
COVID-19 vaccination programs saved more than 18.5 million hospitalizations and 3.2 million deaths between December 2020 and November 2022 — benefits that disproportionately helped vulnerable communities of color.
Political implications
DeSantis said some mandates might be removed immediately; others will require legislative approval. Ladapo has been a vocal critic of COVID-19 vaccines, earlier advising against vaccinating healthy children and even calling such vaccines “poison,” despite FDA assurances of safety and efficacy.
Vaccination has been proven to prevent deaths. A 2024 World Health Organization study estimated vaccines prevented 154 million deaths worldwide over five decades, including 101 million infants — 60 percent of those lives saved were thanks to the measles vaccine, according to multiple news outlets.
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Where families can find help
Public health leaders urge families, especially in Black communities, to consult trusted sources:
- The CDC offers comprehensive vaccine guidance on schedules, side effects, and exemptions.
- Local health departments and federally qualified health centers provide reliable, accessible services.
- Pediatricians remain critical for vaccine counseling and catch-up immunizations.
Families should be cautious of misinformation spreading online. Clear, community-based outreach is essential to ensure vaccine coverage doesn’t fall further.
For now, Florida parents — and particularly those in Black communities — must navigate a shifting vaccination landscape that could lower protections for their children.
