TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Republican-dominated Florida has become the preeminent lab for the medical freedom movement, with the state’s leaders and lawmakers banning masks in schools and fluoride in water while questioning the efficacy of some vaccines.
But this year, those issues are landing with a thud on the campaign trail.
Even though Gov. Ron DeSantis made medical freedom a cornerstone of his time in office, and the state’s conservative surgeon general, Joseph Ladapo, remains a national folk hero to some MAHA groups, the issues are now overshadowed by affordability and broader scrutiny on the effects of some MAHA-influenced proposals. Most candidates this cycle have focused on economic concerns, including taxes and the effects of the AI boom, over government health care restrictions. Many campaigns, using focus groups, have found issues such as religious vaccine exemptions and informed medical consent were not high on voters’ lists.
Original article online at: https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/22/florida-midterms-medical-freedom-maha-01005222