Governor Demands Biden Allow Florida to Purchase Blocked COVID Treatments
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has long been a bit of an outlier on the national scene when it comes to COVID-19, erring proudly and loudly on the side of liberty in terms of vaccine and mask mandates. This has, unsurprisingly, put him in the crosshairs of the Biden administration on several different occasions, as the two spar over an issue of states’ rights.
The latest battlefield that these two governmental entities are meeting upon is that of monoclonal antibodies – some of the leading treatments of COVID-19 currently available.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., called for the Biden administration to allow his state to obtain more monoclonal antibody treatments as it encounters the omicron variant of COVID-19.
Advertisement - story continues below“We’re past the point now where we’re able to get it directly from any of these companies,” DeSantis said during a press conference on Monday.
“The federal government has cornered the entire market. They basically took control of the supply in September.”
This is the latest in a disturbing trend that seems to have pit the federal government against the Sunshine State.
The governor’s press conference came nearly a week after his surgeon general, Dr. Joseph Ladapo, sent U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra a letter requesting the federal government restore distribution of monoclonal antibodies treatments to the state.
Advertisement - story continues below“The federal government is actively preventing the effective distribution of monoclonal antibody treatments in the U.S.,” Ladapo wrote. “The sudden suspension of multiple monoclonal antibody therapy treatments from distribution to Florida removes a health care provider’s ability to decide the best treatment options for their patients in this state.”
As Ladapo’s letter noted, HHS said in September that it would determine state-by-state distribution of certain drugs. An official reportedly said the move would “help maintain equitable distribution, both geographically and temporally, across the country.”
As of this writing, the Biden administration has not responded to Florida’s request or accusations.
