TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Governor Ron DeSantis announced Tuesday that Dr. Joseph Ladapo is his selection to be the new surgeon general for the state of Florida.
Dr. Ladapo would replace Scott Rivkees.
Ladapo comes to Florida from UCLA. According to his bio, he's currently an associate professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine where he cares for hospitalized patients. He has served as a faculty member in the Department of Population Health at NYU School of Medicine and as a staff fellow at the Food and Drug Administration.
Dr. Ladapo went to Wake Forest University and received his medical degree from Harvard Medical School and a PhD in health policy from Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. His bio indicated he completed clinical training at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
His bio on UCLA’s website says he graduated from Wake Forest University and received his MD from Harvard Medical School and his Ph.D. in Health Policy from Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
Ladapo has also generated controversy. He's written op-eds during the COVID-19 pandemic questioning the efficacy of shutdowns, publicly supported hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19 in 2020, said vaccine mandates can't stop COVID's spread, and said: "tools for stopping variants are limited and, like masks and distancing, vaccines are not a panacea."
