DeSantis Saves Special Needs Kids with $27.5M Fine Against Special Olympics
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is shielding honest Americans from medical tyranny once again — and this time around, it’s almost impossible to argue with his reasoning.
DeSantis’ state law preventing entities from requiring COVID-19 mandates was at odds with the Special Olympics’ requirement that its athletes get the jab, subjecting the athletic organization to hefty state fines unless it relented.
Relent the Special Olympics did, as well it absolutely ought to have.
On Thursday, the organization announced that it was “lifting the vaccine requirement for delegation members attending the 2022 Special Olympics USA Games being held in Orlando, Florida, June 5-12, as required by state of Florida officials on May 27, based upon the Florida Department of Health’s interpretation of Florida law.”
Now, people who would have otherwise been prevented from attending or even participating in the games will be free to do so.
“Delegates who were registered for the Games but were unable to participate due to the prior vaccine requirement, now have the option to attend,” the Special Olympics said in their announcement. “We look forward to welcoming thousands of Special Olympics athletes, families, and fans to an extraordinary 2022 USA Games.”
This was a smart move, considering the organization was staring down the barrel of a $27.5 million fine had it kept the COVID-19 vaccine requirement in place.
Florida said the vaccine rule conflicted with state law, and disqualified Special Olympics athletes from competing based on their vaccine status.
State said they heard from athletes and families of athletes who complained.
Here’s the letter the state sent. 2/3 pic.twitter.com/NgpHsQwve4
— Jay O’Brien (@jayobtv) June 3, 2022
“This will be a relief to a lot of the athletes,” DeSantis said in a news conference. “There’s a significant number of them who were in limbo up until this week.”
Gov. DeSantis Applauds Special Olympics for Dropping Vaccine Mandate https://t.co/YdCkOQaTVa
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) June 3, 2022
Florida’s Surgeon General Joseph A. Ladapo also celebrated the news.
“After being initially disqualified due to their COVID-19 vaccination status, I’m happy to announce that 70 athletes have already been reintegrated with their 500 teammates of the Florida delegation and will compete at the Special Olympics in Orlando!” he wrote on Twitter.
DeSantis has earned himself a well-deserved reputation as a champion of medical freedom since 2021, working to ensure that Floridians cannot be forced to wear masks or receive the novel COVID-19 vaccine.
“At the end of the day, we want people to be able to make informed decisions for themselves. But we’ve got to stop bossing people around. We’ve got to stop the coercion. We’ve got to stop trying to browbeat people,” he said last year as the state legislature worked to ban vaccine requirements in the state in defiance of the Biden administration’s heavy-handed efforts to force everyday Americans to choose between their livelihood and their medical liberties.
That’s really what it boils down to, too. No matter how much coercion and browbeating we’ve been subject to over the last two years, the truth is that vaccination is a matter of individual choice and is simply not a one-size-fits-all option for combating the spread of disease and illness.
Say what you will about the COVID-19 vaccine, many individuals who are ineligible for vaccinations in general are immunocompromised, as some participants in the Special Olympics may be.
These great athletes, many of whom have no doubt overcome incredible odds to be where they are today, do not deserve to be forced to undergo any medical procedure just to participate in the games.
Many politicians promise expansive protections for their citizens, but DeSantis is following through and making sure that his big, attention-getting promises to protect individual medical choice in Florida have delivered in a real, important way.
This is what it takes to stand up to the tyrants — this is what it takes to protect both individual liberty and the most vulnerable among us.
Well done.
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