For Immediate Release: September 8, 2025
Contact: media@hispanicfederation.org
Orlando, FL – Just as flu season is peaking in Florida, state officials announced over the weekend that they will likely end vaccine mandates for everyone in December if approved by the legislature. This would make Florida the first state in the nation to enact this regressive policy, endangering our communities, increasing the risk of avoidable sickness and increasing the risk for potential deaths. Below is a statement from Laudi Campo, Florida State Director for Hispanic Federation, in response to this announcement:
“The move to eliminate vaccine mandates would undo decades of public health progress, widen health disparities, and put already vulnerable communities at even greater risk. This policy threatens the welfare of our children, families, health workers, school staff, and our nation at large. The safety threats resulting from the end of vaccine mandates will have a disproportionate impact on communities of color, students, elderly, and low-income communities that historically bear the heaviest burden when public health systems fail.
Decades of investment in vaccines have significantly reduced and, in some cases, eradicated preventable diseases. Yet, as vaccination rates decline, we are already witnessing the resurgence of illnesses that were once nearly eliminated. Florida’s decision would accelerate this dangerous trend, turning schools, hospitals, and senior centers into hotspots for preventable disease outbreaks. Such a move would deprive vulnerable communities, especially those with the least access to care, of the protections that have safeguarded generations.
In addition, the elimination of vaccine mandates would place an overwhelming burden on Florida’s healthcare system. As vaccinations decrease, infectious diseases will increase, causing public health emergencies and straining healthcare systems which are already at the breaking point.
Hispanic Federation calls on state leaders to ensure that vaccine mandates in Florida schools remain in place to protect the health of all Floridians and the nation as a whole. American families and communities deserve consistent science-backed public health policy and not the political games that gamble with our lives.f
Additional Background
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health reported in July that the U.S. surpassed a milestone in measles this year with 1,281 cases.
Whooping cough also spread nearly twice as fast this year as it did the previous year, with more than 9,000 cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
