Florida Surgeon General Responds to Critiques of mRNA Vaccine Guidance

Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo responded to the outrage over the state’s updated guidance on mRNA vaccines — recommending against them for men under the age of 40 — on social media after Twitter temporarily censored the official’s post, asserting that the guidance violated its coronavirus misinformation policies.

Ladapo announced new guidance on mRNA vaccines on Friday following a Florida Department of Health analysis which found an 84 percent increase in “the relative incidence of cardiac-related death among males 18-39 years old within 28 days following mRNA vaccination.”

“Individuals with preexisting cardiac conditions, such as myocarditis and pericarditis, should take particular caution when considering vaccination and discuss with their health care provider,” the guidance reads, and goes on to recommend against the coronavirus mRNA vaccinations for men 18-39 years old.

The guidance adds that males over the age of 60 still had a ten percent “increased risk of cardiac-related death within 28 days of mRNA vaccination,” but non-mRNA vaccines did not carry this same risk.

“Studying the safety and efficacy of any medications, including vaccines, is an important component of public health,” Ladapo said in a statement announcing the guidance.

“Far less attention has been paid to safety and the concerns of many individuals have been dismissed – these are important findings that should be communicated to Floridians,” he added.

Twitter took the post down but later restored it. As a result, Ladapo provided a follow-up on the platform.