Florida health officials warn against new COVID booster, contradicting CDC guidance

SARASOTA, Fla. — Contradicting guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state’s top health department official recommended residents against getting a new COVID-19 vaccine booster.

Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo and the Republican governor, who is also running for president, discussed the state's new vaccine guidance on Wednesday during a panel discussion with health professionals who were critical of the shot. Ladapo announced that state health officials will warn anyone under the age of 65 against getting the new boosters recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

DeSantis strongly promoted COVID-19 vaccines when they were first released but has since become one of the most prominent public officials raising questions about their safety, even as federal health officials insist that the benefits of the shots outweigh any risks.

“I will not stand by and let the FDA and CDC use healthy Floridians as guinea pigs for new booster shots that have not been proven to be safe or effective,” DeSantis said in a news release after the panel discussion.

The governor has increasingly expressed skepticism over what he has called "the jab" amid his campaign for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination. Last week, his campaign sent out an email to supporters vowing to "fight back against every bogus attempt the Left makes to expand government control" in regards to COVID-19 precautions.

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Late summer COVID-19 spike

Wednesday's announcement comes as Florida hospitals are reporting more COVID cases than any other state. Florida’s pandemic death toll has surpassed 90,000 and the weekly new cases topped 24,000 for two consecutive weeks. 

Since early July, the United States has seen a spike in COVID hospital admissions. And it's likely infections are rising too but since federal authorities ended the public health emergency in May, states and the CDC no longer track positive infections.

In an effort to stop the disease from spreading, some schools, hospitals, and businesses have temporarily implemented mask requirements or have recommended masking up again. And despite there being no widespread COVID mandate, Republicans have been pushing back against COVID recommendations.

CDC, FDA recommend updated vaccine for everyone

The CDC is recommending everyone age six months and older receive one new shot from Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna. The CDC guidance says individuals 65 or older, or who are moderately or severely immunocompromised, can get new shots.

The CDC website says the updated or "bivalent" vaccines protect "against both the original virus that causes COVID-19 and the Omicron variant BA.4 and BA.5."

Federal officials say the new vaccines are safe and effective.

"The FDA is confident in the safety and effectiveness of these updated vaccines, and the agency’s benefit-risk assessment demonstrates that the benefits of these vaccines for individuals 6 months of age and older outweigh the risks," the FDA said Monday in information posted on its website.

On Tuesday, the CDC said the vaccination is the best way to prevent COVID-19 hospitalizations, deaths, and to help people reduce chances of suffering from long-term COVID effects.

"The virus that causes COVID-19 is always changing, and protection from COVID-19 vaccines declines over time," the CDC said on its website. "Receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine can restore protection and provide enhanced protection against the variants currently responsible for most infections and hospitalizations in the United States."

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DeSantis' panel contradicts CDC, FDA

In addition to Ladapo, the panel convened Wednesday by DeSantis included Stanford University Health Policy Professor Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a prominent COVID contrarian who frequently has participated in events organized by the governor, and two other physicians.

The panelists raised a number of concerns about the new shots.

"At this point with the amount of immunity that’s in the community… and the questions we have about safety and about effectiveness, but especially about safety, my judgment is that it’s not a good decision for young people and for people who are not at high risk at this point in the pandemic," Ladapo said of getting an updated vaccine shot.

Bhattacharya said he supports that recommendation.

"You’re gonna hear, I think, from American public health a lot of outcry over the guidance but I think they should be asked: What data are they relying on?" Bhattacharya said.

Public health expert: Surgeon General's guidance 'a disservice to Floridians'

Dr. Marissa Levine, a public health expert at the University of South Florida-Health and a former Virginia state health commissioner, said the state’s action Wednesday "was a disservice to Floridians." 

Levine said it was important for Floridians to consider their own health situation and rely on advice from health care professionals rather than "making a decision based on a statement from a politician." She also disputed the extent of the booster risks raised by DeSantis, Ladapo, and the other vaccine skeptics who took part in Wednesday’s online exchange. 

"The disease itself has risks," Levine said. "From what we see in the data, the risks from COVID are worse than any risk from the vaccine." 

She framed the governor’s stance against his bid for the Republican presidential nomination. 

"There’s an underlying motivation here that people have to be aware of and it’s not really helpful to the public. It undermines our institutions, which is dangerous and evokes more fear than caring and support," Levine said. 

Contributing: Jeanine Santucci, USA TODAY; News Service of Florida; The Associated Press