Florida’s surgeon general has said that children who are not vaccinated against measles can still go to school amid an outbreak of the disease, in a move that defies CDC guidelines.
A school in the state’s south is responding to a measles outbreak after six students tested positive.
In a letter to school parents, Joseph Ladapo said he would leave it up to parents to decide whether to keep unvaccinated children at home.
CDC health officials say unvaccinated children should stay home for 21 days after exposure to an infected person to prevent them from getting the disease.
Doctors have accused Dr Ladapo of putting vulnerable children at risk.
Dr Ladapo has previously been criticized for his comments about Covid jabs being unsafe and refusing to wear a mask during the pandemic.
Dr. Ladapo had repeatedly clashed with science over the pandemic, particularly vaccines.
Last month, he called for ending the use of Covid mRNA injections, which was met with fierce opposition from the medical community.
A sixth case of measles was reported at Manatee Bay Elementary School in Weston, Florida. On Friday, February 16, doctors were informed of the first case of measles, a third-grade boy with no travel history.
A letter to parents on Tuesday signed by Dr. Ladapo acknowledged that the “normal” recommendation is for unvaccinated children to stay home for 21 days, the period of time in which the virus can be transmitted.
But it said, “The DOH leaves it up to parents or guardians to make decisions about school attendance.”
According to the CDC, Florida’s MMR vaccination rate is about 91 percent, lower than the national rate of 93 percent.
The CDC has not responded to Dr. Ladapo’s advice.
Dr. Ladapo has also deviated from CDC guidelines on the safety of Covid shots.
In October 2021, he said more information was needed about the safety of the jabs.
All shots undergo rigorous testing before being approved for use in people to ensure they are safe.
Top U.S. health authorities, including the CDC, have repeatedly said it is safe to use.
Ben Hoffman, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, responded to Dr. Ladapo’s advice to parents about measles: “It goes against everything I’ve heard and everything I’ve read.”
‘This is against our policy. It goes against what [CDC] would recommend.’
Meanwhile, measles is on the rise. The CDC has reported at least 26 cases in at least 12 states, which is nearly double the number at this time last year.
MMR vaccine coverage has fallen another two percent between the 2019-2021 school year and the 2022-2023 school year, according to the CDC, meaning about a quarter of a million kindergartens are at risk for measles infection. throughout the United States.
School vaccine exemptions also reached a record high, topping five percent in ten states.
Experts have said the outbreaks are due in part to the growing number of parents refusing to vaccinate their children after the political fallout from Covid mandates and misinformation about vaccine safety.
Measles virus particles can remain in the air and on surfaces for up to two hours after an infected person leaves the space, meaning that up to 90 percent of people without immunity will become infected if exposed.
For the MMR vaccine, the two recommended doses are 97 percent effective against measles, the CDC reports. One dose is 93 percent effective.
John Moore, professor of microbiology and immunology at Weill Cornell Medical College, said: “The reason there is a measles outbreak in Florida schools is because many parents have not protected their children with the safe and effective measles vaccine. measles.
‘And why is that? It’s because the anti-vaccine sentiment in Florida comes from the top of the public health food chain: Joseph Ladapo.
Paul Offit, a pediatric infectious disease expert at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, said Ladapo’s refusal to encourage vaccination puts children in grave danger.
‘Are you trying to prove that measles is not a contagious disease when the data is clear that it is the most contagious disease that can be prevented by vaccines, much more contagious than influenza or Covid?’ he told the Washington Post.
Dr Ladapo previously said Covid mRNA injections increase the risk of heart-related death by 84 per cent in young men.
The vaccine-skeptical official cited a Florida Department of Health analysis to back up his claims, but independent scientists say it contains major statistical flaws.