The New York Times reports:
In Florida, unlike the nation as a whole — and states like New York and California that Mr. DeSantis likes to single out — most people who died from Covid died after vaccines became available to all adults, not before. As the governor’s political positions began to shift, so did his state’s death rate, for the worse.
Mr. DeSantis and his aides have said that his opposition was to mandates, not to the vaccinations themselves. They say the governor only questioned the efficacy of the shots once it became evident that they did not necessarily prevent infection — which prompted him to criticize experts and the federal government.
Tapping into the Republican revolt against scientific authority made him a political star. But that revolt came with costs. “These were preventable deaths,” Dr. Rivkees, who resigned as Florida’s surgeon general in September 2021, said in a recent interview.
Read the full article. It’s quite the deep dive. Gift link.
“But a close review by The New York Times of Florida’s pandemic response, including a new analysis of the data on deaths, hospitalizations and vaccination rates in the state, suggests that Mr. DeSantis’s account of his record leaves much out.” https://t.co/4LsHKr4pIW
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) July 22, 2023
A L.A. Times analysis found that of the 50 states, Florida had the worst COVID-19 death and coronavirus case rate for the summer.
California for the summer had only about one-sixth of Florida’s COVID-19 death rate, and one-third of their case rate. https://t.co/5kN5jbdy2X
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) September 29, 2021
Why Florida hasn’t been reporting COVID cases and deaths to the CDC https://t.co/tokFklbOaU
— The Palm Beach Post (@pbpost) April 8, 2023
Florida leading nation in deaths from COVID, federal data shows https://t.co/eHpypsSibu
— The Palm Beach Post (@pbpost) June 10, 2022
Reminder that DeSantis was actually pro-vaccine before he was against them. He touted their effectiveness in reducing mortality rates. He changed his tune and became anti-vax because of his insane right wing base and people died as a result. A dangerous, empty suit charlatan. https://t.co/rnDZsv1lKG pic.twitter.com/k8k8xEtLOQ
— Thomas Kennedy (@tomaskenn) July 22, 2023