DeSantis Calls COVID-19, Which In The U.S. Has Caused Countless Deaths, A "Preferred Narrative"

By Issac Morgan, Florida Phoenix

January 17, 2023

Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday unveiled an initiative to permanently ban mask requirements across Florida and permanently block COVID-19 vaccine requirements at schools and businesses.

During a press conference in Panama City Beach, the Republican governor announced a proposal on those issues, including prohibiting employers in Florida from firing employees who aren’t vaccinated.

The proposal would have to be in the form of a piece of legislation during the 2023 legislative session.

DeSantis was joined by Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo and others at the news conference.

The proposal also pushed for protection of “medical freedom of speech.” That would mean allowing physicians “to disagree with the preferred narrative, of the medical community,” according to a poster-like flier that had limited information about the initiative.

Earlier, DeSantis had banned what’s called “vaccine passports.”

But now, he is pushing for a broader ban across Florida. The governor said that he is confident lawmakers will pass legislation to protect freedom of speech from the medical community.

The state wants to prevent medical professionals from “discrimination based on their personal views, and ensure “no one loses their job or medical license for voicing their professional opinions in Florida,” according to a press release from the governor’s office.

“They will pass it this year; I’ve already talked to the leadership,” DeSantis said. “But we want to have our medical practitioners, particularly our physicians, be protected with the freedom to be able to speak the truth.”

In 2021, DeSantis called members of the Legislature to convene a special session to protect workers from vaccine mandates by employers. And the state had also blocked through legislation a mask requirement for children at public schools, among other provisions, as previously reported by the Florida Phoenix.

“We also called a special session of the Florida Legislature to ensure that Floridians livelihoods were protected,” DeSantis said. “We banned mandates in the workplace for COVID shots because nobody should have to choose between a job they need and a shot they don’t want.”

The Florida Phoenix, a nonprofit news site that’s free of advertising and free to readers, covers state government and politics through a mix of in-depth stories, briefs, and social media updates on the latest events, editorial cartoons, and progressive commentary. The Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit supported by grants and a coalition of donors and readers.