Florida will become the first state in the US to move towards scrapping all childhood vaccine mandates, governor Ron DeSantis announced on Wednesday. The decision, unveiled at a news conference in Valrico, builds on his push during the Covid-19 pandemic to limit health requirements and expand what he calls “medical freedom.” DeSantis said the plan will be supported by a new “Make America healthy again” (MAHA) commission, to be chaired by Lt. governor Jay Collins and first lady Casey DeSantis. The panel will look into medical consent, parental rights, safe food choices and policies that challenge “medical orthodoxy not backed by data.” Its recommendations will feed into a legislative package next session aimed at ending vaccine mandates written into state law.Florida surgeon general Dr Joseph Ladapo strongly backed the move, describing current vaccine requirements in schools and childcare facilities as an “immoral” intrusion that restricts parental choice. “People have a right to make their own informed decisions,” Ladapo said. “They don’t have the right to tell you what to put in your body.” He added that some rules could be removed directly by the health department, while others would need action from lawmakers.

Currently, Florida requires children to be vaccinated against measles, chickenpox, hepatitis B, diphtheria, polio and whooping cough to attend schools or day care centres. Ladapo said the goal was to end “all of them, every last one of them.” DeSantis argued that Florida has led the way in resisting strict health measures, pointing to the state’s refusal to enforce Covid vaccine mandates, vaccine passports, school closures or job requirements. “I don’t think there’s another state that’s done as much as Florida. We want to stay ahead of the curve,” he said.