CDC, FDA send letter to Florida’s Surgeon General warning he is endangering lives with COVID vaccine risk advice

On Friday, U.S. public health agencies sent a letter to Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo warning that his fueling of vaccine hesitancy is harming the public, particularly Florida seniors.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention want Ladapo to stop disproportionately focusing public attention on the few instances of adverse effects from the COVID vaccine. They urge him to recognize that more than 13 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been given around the world “with little evidence of widespread adverse events.”

“Not only is there no evidence of increased risk of death following mRNA vaccines, but available data have shown quite the opposite: that being up to date on vaccinations saves lives,” the letter reads.

The letter responds to Ladapo’s warning for health care providers issued in February as well as an accompanying letter to CDC and FDA leaders that points to an increase in adverse reactions reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) after the COVID-19 vaccine’s introduction.

In his warning, Ladapo said he conducted his own research and confirmed it with others.

“In addition to Florida’s analysis of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, academic researchers throughout our country and around the globe have seen troubling safety signals of adverse events surrounding this vaccine,” Ladapo claimed.

The CDC and FDA say Florida’s surgeon general did not use VAERS correctly.

Reports of incidents in VAERS “do not mean that a vaccine caused the event,” the federal agencies said. Anyone can enter data in VAERS. Large, carefully-designed studies by the CDC and other organizations find that there is a small chance of specific side effects but the risk of dying from COVID-19 when unvaccinated is much higher than the risk of dying from a vaccine.

The federal officials rebuked Ladapo for not doing his duty to the population he serves by failing to encourage Floridians to get fully boosted at a time when seniors in the state are under-vaccinated compared to the national average.

Only 29% of Florida seniors have received the updated bivalent vaccine, compared to 41% nationally.

“It is the job of public health officials around the country to protect the lives of the populations they serve, particularly the vulnerable. Fueling vaccine hesitancy undermines this effort,” the letter reads. “... Unfortunately, the misinformation about COVID-19 vaccine safety has caused some Americans to avoid getting the vaccines they need to be up to date. This has led to unnecessary death, severe illness and hospitalization.”

Ladapo’s letter also implies the federal government is somehow retaliating against doctors for conversations they have with their patients about COVID-19 vaccines.

“Health care professionals should have the ability to accurately communicate the risks and benefits of a medical intervention to their patients without fear of retaliation by the federal government,” Ladapo wrote.

The FDA and CDC responded by saying that they encourage communication between physicians and patients about the benefits and risks of medical interventions.

“It is inaccurate to suggest that the federal government will ‘retaliate’ against any health care provider for communicating with their patients about the benefits and risks of a particular medical product,” the response reads.

Sun Sentinel health reporters Cindy Goodman can be reached at cgoodman@sunsentinel.com. Orlando Sentinel health reporter Caroline Catherman can be reached at ccatherman@orlandosentinel.com.