By Staff Report
The state of Florida wants to remove four immunizations from entry requirements for PreK-12 public and private schools.
The Florida Department of Health is proposing a rule to remove hepatitis B, varicella (chickenpox), Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) and pneumococcal conjugate vaccines from school attendance requirements, a move that has been in the works for almost a year after Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo announced his intent to eliminate all vaccine mandates in the state.
The rule, which was approved by Ladapo on Aug. 20, has a 21-day period for public input before final approval. DOH did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.
The proposed rule also expands religious vaccine exemptions to include moral and ethical beliefs and allows parents and college students to opt out of having their records included in the state vaccine database.
Florida currently allows religious exemptions “if immunizations are in conflict with the religious tenets and practices of the child’s parent or guardian,” according to DOH.
Without an exemption, Florida law requires students to receive vaccinations for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), polio, diphtheria, rubeola and tetanus to attend K-12 public schools. But the immunizations being considered for repeal by DOH are required only by agency rule, not state law, and can be removed by the agency itself.
Last September, Gov. Ron DeSantis and Ladapo called on the Legislature to roll back all vaccine mandates in the state.
“Every last one of them is wrong and drips with disdain and slavery,” Ladapo said in Valrico, Hillsborough County, at the time.
“Who am I to tell you what your child should put in their body? I don’t have that right. Your body is a gift from God,” he added.
In response, American Academy of Pediatrics President Dr. Susan Kressly said the move would put children at risk of getting sick.
“The AAP believes every family should have access to immunizations to keep their community healthy,” Kressly said in a statement. “Schools are an important part of that community. For many kids, the best part of school is being with friends — sharing space, playing on the playground and trading germs. Close contact makes it easy for contagious diseases to spread quickly.”
Even though the move to repeal all vaccine mandates was supported by DeSantis, First Lady Casey DeSantis and then-Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas, no legislator filed a bill during any of the multiple legislative sessions this year to remove those requirements from Florida law.
Multiple attempts at a “Medical Freedom” bill that would have expanded vaccine exemptions and required doctors to provide an alternative vaccine schedule passed the Senate but failed to pass the House.
In December 2025, DOH held an open meeting in Panama City to discuss changing vaccination requirements for public schools. Emma Spencer, a director within DOH, said the effort was “grounded in policy based on considerations that favor parental rights and medical freedom.”
Parents’ rights advocates praised the state and also repeated false claims, such as that vaccines cause autism, while doctors from around the state pleaded with DOH to reconsider, saying the move would turn back the clock on medical advancements.
Eehab Kenawy, a Panama City pediatrician, said religious exemptions already exist to allow parents and guardians to opt their children out of vaccinations.
“You’re not forced. But sending a message to the general public that vaccines are not important, vaccines are not needed, is not the way to do it,” Kenawy said.
AMBER PATINO