According to multiple reports, Louisiana now has a policy in the state's health department that forbids advertising or promoting various vaccinations.
The Louisiana Department of Health forbids public health workers from promoting the COVID-19, influenza, and mpox vaccines.
NPR reports:
NPR has confirmed the policy was discussed at this meeting, and at two other meetings held within the department's Office of Public Health, on Oct. 3 and Nov. 21, through interviews with four employees at the Department of Health, which employs more than 6,500 people and is the state's largest agency.
According to the employees, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they fear losing their jobs or other forms of retaliation, the policy would be implemented quietly and would not be put in writing.
Staffers were also told that it applies to every aspect of the health department's work: Employees could not send out press releases, give interviews, hold vaccine events, give presentations or create social media posts encouraging the public to get the vaccines. They also could not put up signs at the department's clinics that COVID, flu or mpox vaccines were available on site.
"NPR blows gasket that Louisiana wants pharma companies to have to use some of their massive vaccine profits to promote their own products rather than use taxpayer money," Aaron Siri commented.