Confusion has reigned supreme regarding Florida Statute 381.00315 (1)(4)(b) – a law that covers measures during a public health emergency. Prior to a Special Session in 2021, the statute included language which would allow for far-reaching actions in violation of the Constitutional rights of citizens:

“If the individual poses a danger to the public health, the State Health Officer may subject the individual to isolation or quarantine. If there is no practical method to isolate or quarantine the individual, the State Health Officer may use any means necessary to vaccinate or treat the individual,” the statute read.

However, the vaccination part was stricken from the legal text in a Special Session. What Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law does not include the authority of public health officials to forcibly inject people with vaccines.

[This has been a talking point for the last couple of weeks, part of an effort to find a political attack against DeSantis to undermine support from the populist Right. As one pro-DeSantis activist noted at the start, this came from a misreading of what amended legislation looks like in publications. It appeared that DeSantis signed the original bill, which has been law for two decades, when all he signed was a bill that amended it to remove authority to forcibly inoculate Florida residents. Like the equally specious argument that DeSantis locked down the state for months, it’s an argument that falls apart under the lightest of scrutiny. — Ed]