The debate over vaccinations in the United States, particularly in red states, has become a central topic of political polarization, pitting the position of the scientific and medical community against that of certain government officials, particularly those aligned with President Donald Trump’s ideology.
The vaccine controversy is a clear example of how public health has become an ideological battleground in the world’s leading power, where scientific principles are pitted against government distrust and the defense of individual freedom over established medical guidelines.
Opposition to vaccinations has increased in recent years, fueled by false claims that they are linked to autism and other health problems. Conservatives are more inclined to this way of thinking and exempt their children from vaccinations for religious reasons.
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The practice of professional and critical journalism is a mainstay of democracy. That is why it bothers those who believe that they are the owners of the truth.
The Secretary of Health, the controversial Robert F. Kennedy, is the protagonist of the government’s anti-vaccination policy and the spearhead of this trend, which is being questioned by experts.
Kennedy, an environmental lawyer, emerged as a prominent anti-vaccination activist in the mid-2000s, filing lawsuits against the powerful U.S. pharmaceutical sector.
Since taking office, he has limited Covid-19 doses to smaller groups, cut federal research grants for mRNA technology that is said to have saved millions of lives, and redirected funds to study medical research disputed by scientific sectors.
In that spirit, he fired Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Susan Monarez and several senior officials, plunging the country’s most important health agency into an internal crisis.
Frightening. Florida, a strong Republican state, is emblematic of the dispute. Gov. Ron DeSantis’ policies reflected an attitude of deregulation and a strong distrust of the recommendations of federal health officials.
Florida is currently considering suspending the compulsory vaccination system. State Surgeon General Joseph A. Ladapo advocated lifting all vaccination requirements in the state, including requiring children to attend public schools.
“The Florida Department of Health will work in collaboration with the governor to end all vaccination mandates in Florida: everyone, every single one of them,” Ladapo stated emphatically.
These “regulations,” he said, referring to health precautions, “are wrong and radiate contempt and slavery. Who am I, the man who is here now, to tell you what to take? Who am I to tell you what your child should take? I don’t have that right. Your body is a gift from God,” Ladapo concluded.
If adopted, this proposed policy would make Florida the first state to not require vaccinations for school-aged children, with the inherent dangers that come with it.
Florida’s proposal faced strong opposition, including from the American Medical Association (AMA), which warned that the measure could “undermine decades of progress in public health” and increase the risk of outbreaks of diseases such as measles, mumps, polio and chickenpox that could be eradicated or controlled thanks to vaccination campaigns.
In addition to the specific case of Florida, there are several states that allow exemptions for school vaccinations based on religious and philosophical beliefs, such as Connecticut and Idaho.
In contrast, democratic states take opposite positions. For example, California, Oregon and Washington have formed a new “West Coast Health Alliance” to set their own vaccination policies and public health guidelines in response to concerns about the “politicization of public health.”