His credentials are impressive, but his track-record on COVID-19 is troubling.
On Tuesday, Dr. Joseph Ladapo was named Florida’s new surgeon general and secretary of the state’s health department. In announcing Ladapo’s appointment, Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican, praised his “remarkable academic and medical career.”
Ladapo, an associate professor at UCLA’s medical school, holds both a medical degree and a PhD in health policy – both from Harvard.
But throughout the pandemic, Ladapo has been out of sync with the overwhelming scientific consensus on the coronavirus. He promoted the use of hydroxychloroquine, even after the World Health Organization warned that there was scant evidence it was an effective tool against COVID-19.
In a Wall Street Journal op-ed he co-authored, Ladapo gave academic cover to vaccine hesitancy, claiming “the risks of a Covid-19 vaccine may outweigh the benefits for certain low-risk populations, such as children, young adults and people who have recovered from Covid-19.” Dr. Jonathan Reiner, a professor at The George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences, called the op-ed “a remarkably bad piece.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have time again demonstrated that the benefits of inoculation far outweigh the rare risks.
In a second WSJ op-ed written last week, Ladapo also expressed doubt about the efficacy of mask-wearing, lockdowns, and vaccine mandates. In the same piece, he used anecdotal evidence to suggest that ivermectin – the anti-parasite drug the FDA said should not be used to treat or prevent COVID-19 – might be a useful tool against coronavirus.
If there’s a through line in Ladapo’s COVID-19 writings, its a penchant for contrarianism. He consistently bemoans the role politics has played in public health policy during the pandemic, but time and again, he provides commentary that aligns with the political leanings of conservatives. He undermines bonafide evidence proving the efficacy of masks, vaccines, and social distancing but elevates small studies supporting long shot therapies and cures.
It’s easy to see why DeSantis has recruited Ladapo to be Florida’s top health official. While DeSantis deserves some praise for the state’s relatively high vaccination rate, his all-out battle against mask-wearing has coincided with a major spike in COVID-19 deaths in the state. 1 in 400 Floridians who were alive in March 2020 have since died of the virus, according to The Associated Press. No state has a higher per capita death rate in recent weeks.
In his introductory press conference, Ladapo echoed DeSantis’ defiant tone on COVID-19, one the eschews precaution in favor of “freedom.”
“Florida will completely reject fear as a way of making policies in public health. So we’re done with fear,” Ladapo said. “That’s been something that’s been, unfortunately, a centerpiece of health policy in the United States ever since the beginning of the pandemic and it’s over here. Expiration date. It’s done.”
Ladapo also downplayed the efficacy of vaccines, adding on Tuesday “Vaccines are up to the person. There’s nothing special about them compared to any other preventive measure. The state should be promoting good health, and vaccination isn’t the only path to that. It’s been treated almost like a religion. It’s just senseless. There’s lots of good pathways to health.”
Ladapo’s message on vaccines stands in stark contrast to the facts. According to the CDC, unvaccinated Americans are 11 times more likely to die from COVID-19 than vaccinated people.