Democrats walk out of hearing with Florida’s top doctor

By ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE
Associated Press

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo has moved closer to Senate confirmation after a tense hearing where Democrats accused the state’s top doctor of evading questions on his coronavirus policies and stormed out before casting their votes. Ladapo was appointed in September by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and has drawn national scrutiny over his alignment with the governor in resisting COVID-19 vaccine mandates and other federal public health polices. During a Senate committee hearing Wednesday, Democrats tried to pin Ladapo down with “yes or no” questions on whether he believed vaccines and masks work against coronavirus and other topics. But they were often met with lengthy answers from Ladapo.