Joseph Ladapo

Joseph A. Ladapo is an American physician serving as the surgeon general of Florida; in this capacity, he is in charge of the Florida Department of Health.[1]

Joseph Ladapo
Surgeon General of Florida
Assumed office
September 21, 2021
GovernorRon DeSantis
Preceded byScott Rivkees
Personal details
BornNigeria
EducationWake Forest University (BA)
Harvard University (MD, PhD)

Early life and education

Ladapo was born in Nigeria, the son of a microbiologist.[2] He immigrated to the United States at age five along with his family.[2] He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry from Wake Forest University in 2000,[3] followed by an MD–PhD from Harvard Medical School with a PhD in health policy from Harvard Kennedy School in 2008. He is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine.[4][5]

Career

Ladapo has worked as an associate professor at the UCLA Medical Center, where he researched patient-centered approaches against coronary artery disease. In a March 24, 2020 opinion column in USA Today, and in other public forums, Ladapo said that he "spent the past week taking care of patients with COVID-19 at UCLA’s flagship hospital."[6] However, UCLA staff scheduling records from that time period reportedly do not show him assigned to treat COVID patients, and four UCLA colleagues told MSNBC that "they do not believe Dr. Ladapo had actually treated COVID patients at all at UCLA."[7] Previously he was on the faculty of the Department of Population Health at New York University Grossman School of Medicine, and was a staff fellow for the Food and Drug Administration.[5]

Florida surgeon general

Ladapo was appointed as surgeon general of Florida on September 21, 2021, by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. He was simultaneously appointed an associate professor at UF Health, igniting controversy from critics who claimed that Ladapo's fast-tracked hiring was the result of inappropriate political influence at the university, and that concerns about his promotion of COVID misinformation were ignored.[8] As a vocal supporter of DeSantis's COVID-19 policies,[9][10][11] Ladapo had previously promoted unproven treatments against COVID-19, opposed COVID-19 vaccine requirements, questioned the safety of COVID-19 vaccines, and associated with America's Frontline Doctors, a far-right, pro-Trump group known for promoting falsehoods about the pandemic.[11][12][13]

Asked in September 2021 whether he believed that states should promote vaccines, Ladapo said instead that states should promote "good health" and said that vaccines have "been treated almost like a religion. It's just senseless."[4]

In his first days as Florida surgeon general, Ladapo signed an emergency rule that repealed quarantines for schoolchildren exposed to COVID-19.[12]

In October 2021, he refused to wear a mask while in a meeting with State Senator Tina Polsky, who had been diagnosed with breast cancer and was set to undergo radiation therapy.[14] Ladapo subsequently refused to say whether he had been vaccinated against COVID-19.[15] State Senate President Wilton Simpson sent a memo to all Senate staff and Senators that referred to his actions as "disappointing".[16] Ladapo released a statement six days after the incident, stating that "It is important to me to communicate clearly and effectively with people. I can’t do that when half of my face is covered."[17]

References
  1. "State Surgeon General | Florida Department of Health".
  2. Odunsi, Wale (2021-09-26). "Florida appoints Nigeria-born Joseph Ladapo as surgeon general". Daily Post Nigeria. Retrieved 2021-10-25.
  3. https://scholar.harvard.edu/jladapo/files/curriculum_vitae_-_joseph_ladapo.pdf
  4. Shivaram, Deepa (2021-09-22). "Florida Gov. DeSantis Taps A New Surgeon General Who Doesn't Support Vaccine Mandates". NPR. Retrieved 2021-10-24.
  5. Mueller, Pat. "Joseph Ladapo selected as Florida's new surgeon general". wctv. Retrieved 2021-10-24.
  6. Ladapo, Joseph A. (March 24, 2021). "Coronavirus pandemic: We were caught unprepared. It is too late for shutdowns to save us". USA Today. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  7. Powers, Scott (November 9, 2021). "UCLA sources: Joseph Ladapo did not treat COVID-19 patients". Florida Politics. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  8. Schweers, Jeffrey (October 28, 2021). "DeSantis mega-donor, UF Board of Trustees chair supplied Ladapo's resume, fast-tracking surgeon general's hire". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  9. Lonas, Lexi (September 21, 2021). "DeSantis's new surgeon general opposes vaccine mandates". The Hill. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  10. Mower, Lawrence; Wilson, Kirby (September 21, 2021). "Florida's next surgeon general opposes mask, vaccine mandates". Miami Herald. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  11. Cohen, Li (September 23, 2021). "Florida's new surgeon general opposes mandates, calls COVID-19 vaccines "nothing special"". CBS News. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  12. Sarkissian, Arek (September 29, 2021). "How a doctor who questioned vaccine safety became DeSantis' surgeon general pick". Politico. Retrieved October 9, 2021.
  13. "New FL surgeon general opposes mask, vaccine mandates". Miami Herald. 2021.
  14. "Surgeon General asked to leave Tina Polsky's office after refusing to wear mask". Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government. 2021-10-24. Retrieved 2021-10-24.
  15. Sarkissian, Arek. "Florida's surgeon general nominee won't share Covid-19 vaccine status". Politico PRO. Retrieved 2021-10-27.
  16. "Florida Senate president calls Dr. Joseph Ladapo's unmasked encounter with Sen. Tina Polsky 'disappointing'". WPTV. 2021-10-25. Retrieved 2021-10-26.
  17. Company, Tampa Publishing. "Florida surgeon general doesn't apologize, says he can't talk clearly with mask". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2021-10-27.
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