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TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Gov. Ron DeSantis passed four pieces of legislation Thursday while speaking in Destin alongside Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo.
The landmark legislative package targeting COVID-19 policies ensures no patient is forced by a business, school, or government entity to undergo testing, wear a mask, or be vaccinated for COVID-19.
The legislation also affords medical professionals the freedom to prescribe alternative treatments and protects physicians’ right to deny service if against their moral, ethical, or religious beliefs.
According to the governor’s office, Florida has become the first state to ban “unsafe and unregulated” gain-of-function research.
“Our early actions during the pandemic protected Floridians and their freedoms,” DeSantis said. “We protected the rights of Floridians to make decisions for themselves and their children and rejected COVID theater, narratives, and hysteria in favor of truth and data. These expanded protections will help ensure that medical authoritarianism does not take root in Florida.”
“Governor DeSantis has been a pinnacle for freedom, and today we advance the cause of public health and individual autonomy in medical decisions,” said State Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo. “From empowering patients to safeguarding children in schools, Florida continues to enshrine individual liberty and lead with common sense.”
