Republican Governor Signs Legislation Prohibiting Discrimination Based on mRNA Vaccination Status

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation extending protections against discrimination based on an individual’s mRNA vaccination status.

“@GovRonDeSantis has signed HB 1299 into law, extending protections against mRNA vaccination status discrimination for another 2 years. This legislation upholds personal freedom and reinforces Florida’s commitment to protecting individual rights,” the Florida Department of Health stated.

.@GovRonDeSantis has signed HB 1299 into law, extending protections against mRNA vaccination status discrimination for another 2 years. This legislation upholds personal freedom and reinforces Florida’s commitment to protecting individual rights.

— Florida Dept. of Health (@HealthyFla) June 3, 2025

Good job Ron!

Five years too late, but I guess we’ll take what we can get!

Per Florida’s Voice:

HB 1299 prohibits health care providers and facilities from discriminating against a patient based solely on vaccination status and affirms a patient’s right to impartial access to treatment or accommodations regardless of vaccination status.

• The bill repeals the scheduled expiration of the definition of mRNA vaccines, maintaining the prohibition against discrimination based on vaccination status.
• It also prohibits health care providers and facilities from discriminating against patients based solely on vaccination status.
• The bill requires Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers and Testing Laboratories to report actual or attempted theft, loss, or diversion of medical marijuana to the Department of Health as well as law enforcement, and defines “owners,” “managers,” and “employees” for background screening purposes.

NEW: @GovRonDeSantis signs bill extending Florida’s ban on mRNA vaccine status discrimination, protecting individual rights. https://t.co/PmgQLOByHi

— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) June 3, 2025

Ron and Casey DeSantis previously criticized the CDC for “pushing the mRNA shots on our kids.”

WATCH:

I thank @CaseyDeSantis for standing with me to call for further protections for Floridians from mRNA vaccine mandates and for her righteous anger at the CDC pushing the mRNA shots on our kids. pic.twitter.com/n5F0arF7Oy

— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) March 5, 2025

Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced last month the COVID-19 jab was removed from the CDC’s recommended immunization schedule for healthy children and pregnant women.

RFK Jr. PULLS COVID Vaccine From Immunization Schedule of Children & Pregnant Women

WUSF reports:

The bill (HB 1299) keeps the legal definition of mRNA — the main type of COVID-19 vaccine — and prohibits government agencies, certain businesses, and schools from discriminating against people based on their vaccination status.

The vaccine description includes COVID-19, “emergency use,” or mRNA, which means any vaccine that uses laboratory-produced messenger ribonucleic acid to trigger the human body’s immune system to generate an immune response.

The law extends measures that DeSantis and lawmakers took to prioritize individual choice during the pandemic through a series of executive orders and legislative actions from 2021 to 2023.