Promoting Covid, Flu Vaccines to Public Quietly Banned by Louisiana Department of Health: 'Unconscionable'

Louisiana public health officials are no longer permitted to promote vaccines, including those against illnesses such as COVID-19 and the flu, to members of the public in a new policy that was covertly implemented in the state.

The policy was considered during two Louisiana Department of Health meetings held on Oct. 3 and Nov. 21, reported NPR. Employees who discussed the policy under anonymity revealed that it was to be quietly implemented and was never written down.

The limits placed upon public health employees are far-reaching. They are forbidden from distributing press releases, giving interviews, holding vaccine events, giving presentations or creating social media posts that advocate for the benefits of vaccines and encourage members of the public to get them.

The policy comes after President-Elect Donald Trump named former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as his pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. RFK Jr., a known anti-vaxxer, has frequently perpetuated myths about vaccines including one debunked conspiracy theory that points to vaccines as the cause of autism amongst children.

Trump has stayed firm in his nomination of RFK Jr., stating that he is "much less radical than you would think" and that he has "a very open mind."

Staff at Louisiana's health department have voiced frustrations with the new policy, with many of them expressing concern about the possible spread of illness as a result of the new rule.

"Do they want to dismantle public health?" one employee at the health department said.

"We're really talking about deaths," said another. "Even a reduction in flu and COVID vaccines can lead to increased deaths."

"It's a step backwards," said Kimberly Hood, who led the Office of Public Health, a subunit of the health department, from 2021 to 2022. "It's a medical marvel that we're fortunate enough to live in a time where these vaccines are available to us, and to not make use of that tool is unconscionable."