‘The normal shot’: No COVID-19 booster vaccine for Ron DeSantis
Ron DeSantis. Image via Fox News Channel

Ron Desantis - Fox News
The Governor had the single shot J&J COVID-19 vaccine in the spring.

During an appearance on the Fox News Channel Sunday morning, Gov. Ron DeSantis suggested he had not received a COVID-19 booster shot.

DeSantis, for his part, continues to warn that the definition of fully vaccinated will shift to include receiving a booster shot. His latest comments suggest that his “one shot” Johnson and Johnson “jab” from earlier this year was the only vaccination he’s received.

“I’ve done whatever I did, the normal shot, and that at the end of the day is people’s individual decisions about what they want to do,” DeSantis said when he was asked if he had received a booster shot by host Maria Bartiromo on Sunday Morning Futures.

Florida Politics asked DeSantis Press Secretary Christina Pushaw about DeSantis’ comments. She responded she is “not able to speak to his private medical decisions.”

The Associated Press reported in April that DeSantis had received the single-dose vaccine. The information was confirmed belatedly by the Governor’s Office. DeSantis did not do a public press event where he got vaccinated, a contrast to many other politicians of both parties.

Critics have contended DeSantis has done little to promote vaccines. But the Governor was consistently enthusiastic about the Johnson and Johnson vaccine, even going so far as to criticize the White House’s messaging against it.

In April, he said President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris had personally contributed to vaccine hesitancy by “saying this was a bad vaccine.”

Later that month, the CDC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a temporary pause on the J&J vaccine over limited reports of blood clots in six women in the days after vaccination.

DeSantis acknowledged the need to issue appropriate warnings with vaccines, but criticized the move to “hastily” pause shots.

“That was a very high-demand vaccine prior to that happening,” added the Governor.

DeSantis had praised the J&J “one shot” variation since before its national launch. He heralded the FDA’s preliminary review of the product in February as a “huge, huge win.”

However, all indications are that the J&J vaccine is on the way out. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is mulling a panel’s recommendation to sideline the Johnson & Johnson shot, as blood clot risks continue to be reported.

DeSantis urged boosters of a different sort in January, amid shortages of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. He found himself battling with the Biden White House over decisions to ensure allocations for the second shots for senior citizens, which were the priority population for his administration’s vaccination efforts when shots were first made available.

“While there is talk at the federal level regarding how to distribute vaccine doses and whether booster shots should be ‘held back,’ Florida is committed to the two-dose regimen for both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. One dose seems to provide some protection, but the 95 percent efficacy has only been shown to be attained by taking the booster shot. This means that while the manner of distribution may change, the necessity of the booster shot will not. Florida wants all seniors to receive booster shots at the appropriate time,” DeSantis said.

___

Jason Delgado and Renzo Downey contributed reporting.

A.G. Gancarski

A.G. Gancarski has written for FloridaPolitics.com since 2014. He is based in Northeast Florida. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter: @AGGancarski


31 comments

  • Alex

    December 19, 2021 at 10:55 am

    DeDumbass either doesn’t understand that probability stuff, or he’s lying to his base again.

    • Alex

      December 19, 2021 at 7:12 pm

      Our great guvnuh DeDumbass had the nerve to speak behind a sign that says “early treatment saves lives” today.

      Yes guvnuh, and getting vaccinated is the earliest and most effective traatment.

      What a fraud.

  • Sister Corrine O'Malady, Saint Adrian of Nicomedia H.S.

    December 19, 2021 at 11:44 am

    “I’ve done whatever I did…”
    Ah, the wisdom of our governor. It cannot be argued that he has done whatever he did!
    I do hope he will loan that heartfelt phrase as an epitaph for the many unvaccinated Floridians he encouraged who are now dead.
    Bless his heart.

    • Zack

      December 19, 2021 at 1:13 pm

      Any unvaccinated Florida people had plenty of other sources of info in addition to the Republican governor.

      That’s unlike the many thousands of nursing home residents of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Michigan who were at the mercy of their Democratic Party governors’ orders.

      • Trrry Cerullo

        December 20, 2021 at 9:43 am

        We don’t know the FL nursing home number. Our great Governor hides those numbers, since he hides all the data we really do not know if 65,000 is correct.

        • Tom

          December 20, 2021 at 3:01 pm

          How ignorant! Terry
          All you Manchurian morons are out.
          What happens, feds subsidy get cut off?

          Are you demented? Where are the bodies, behind the capital. Are you serious Terry crrullo

  • Tom

    December 19, 2021 at 3:13 pm

    That’s correct Zack.
    Yes, Dem tyrannical Govs who sent the most vulnerable seniors to their deaths. Joe Biden who now has more Covid deaths on his watch, compared to past POTUS 45. But how is that ? Oh keep it a secret. Oh yeah, like the past Gov NY. Who wrote a book on the deaths of others and use staff to make $5 million. Despicable pathetic human he is.

    Compared to this wonderful classy, decent Gov and his wonderful wife, Casey. Who separated seniors from nursing homes. Who announced more monoclonal therapeutics Friday, compared to clueless Biden/Harris. Two idiots like Alex, Sista who engage in blasphemy. Bidens HHS depart acknowledged Florida/Gov leading in vaccines to seniors. Florida under America’s Gov set up more monoclonal centers which has deterred hospital stays.

    America’s Governor makes a difference every day! DeSantis the best!

    Govs mansion to WH !!

    • Gdiddy

      December 20, 2021 at 9:10 am

      Tom you are not only stupid, but so incredibly wrong. Take your trailer park brain off the internet.

      • Tom

        December 20, 2021 at 2:58 pm

        gdildo, IF U C K, TELL HER YOU.

        You are to ignorant to address anything I say. I am legend pal
        Go shine Manchurians shoes.
        LMAO

        • Floyd

          December 27, 2021 at 10:38 pm

          I think you mean “too ignorant to…” Then again, you might be too ignorant to understand the different useages and spellings of such basic English word. After all, they don’t have equivalent nuances in Cyrilic, do they comrad?
          LMAO

    • HaryGary

      January 1, 2022 at 5:29 pm

      Tom, like all Trumpers, you are just WRONG…
      On Jan 20, 2021 when Biden took over the US COVID Death total was 435,031.
      Today it’s 824,000 DO THE NUMBERS…
      Trump 435,000 dead
      Biden 389, 000 dead (NOT EVEN 400,000 yet).
      If you start counting when COVID actually got going in April 2020, Trump had all his deaths in only 9 months.
      but Biden had 46,000 LESS IN OVER 12 MONTHS…
      You Trumpers have to cheat/lie to win on any subject there is… from vote totals, economics to COVID statistics…

  • Frankie M.

    December 19, 2021 at 6:53 pm

    More mixed messages from DuhSantis…he should just stick with bleack & regeneron. It’s working wonders.

    • Evan Miller

      December 20, 2021 at 7:26 am

      Are democrats liberal because they are stupid, or stupid because they are liberal?

      • Floyd

        December 27, 2021 at 11:32 pm

        Democrats are liberal because reality has a liberal bias. We live in the real world, not some delusional Bizarro World where an adulterous, lifelong lying con artist whose tongue is buried so deep down the back of Putin’s trousers yet is considered to be the patriotic second coming of a phony baloney deity, political opponents are literally satanic, baby-eating cannibals, and a democrat president who has been dead for decades is supposed to come back, with his also long-dead son (who used to publish a magazing that evicerated Trump monthly) to become a republican president.

  • DJ Bearden

    December 20, 2021 at 10:46 am

    It is a shame and embarrassment to have such a stupid person in our government. He is only in it to make a dollar! He lies every time his mouth is opened. People dying everyday and he doesn’t feel it is necessary to make being vaccinated a priority In our state.

    • Tom

      December 22, 2021 at 6:41 am

      It is an embarrassment to have DJ Bearden along with other Manchurians. You are a liar and Confused. Nikki Fraud is the one benefiting financially you partisan hack.
      America’s Governor, Gov Ron is the best! Wins bigly Nov/22.
      Govs mansion to WH.

  • Concern Citizen

    December 20, 2021 at 1:36 pm

    DeSantis actions are not about the prevention of Covid. His actions reminds me of a sexually active man who will not use condoms for protection from STDs, They know when they get a STD infection there is a medication / treatment to cure it, and they really don’t care if they pass a STD to another sexual partner.
    Why is DeSantis so afraid if getting the Covid vaccine?

    • Evan Miller

      December 20, 2021 at 2:35 pm

      Where do liberals come up with their anti American philosophies? This is the greatest country in the world. If Alex, and all of you liberal left wing commie pinko bleeding hearts hate America so much, go live in North Korea where they will execute you for having the wrong opinion.

      • Concern Citizen

        December 20, 2021 at 3:53 pm

        Evan, DeSantis’s perfect government will be based on the North Korean current socialist state and a totalitarian dictatorship so I am taking my chance and staying in American, hoping that DeSantis will fade away into oblivion.

        PS Evan- –if someone doesn’t agree with you, it is not anti- American or communism.

      • Floyd

        December 27, 2021 at 11:40 pm

        Where were you on Jan 6? Celebrating the democracy of this greatest country in the world? I bet you still think the violent rioters that tried to topple our government, murder the vice president, speaker, and any other politician they disagreed with, and, ignoring the will of the people, install a wannabe dictator who literally said he and King Jong Il were in love, were not treasonous insurrectionists.

    • Tom

      December 20, 2021 at 9:39 pm

      You are a pathetic and disgusting person concerned citizen. Shameful.
      You Dums are just disgusting.

      • Concern Citizen

        December 20, 2021 at 10:34 pm

        Tom the troll with kinder words. May the good Lord continue to help you. Merry Christmas Tom.

        • Tom

          December 21, 2021 at 6:29 pm

          Unconcerned citizen You are Satainistic. Don’t you dare wrap yourself in our Lords birth.
          Troll My ass! I conquer you Manchurians gladly!! .

          • Floyd

            December 27, 2021 at 11:43 pm

            What is a “Satainistic?” You russians really need to learn English if you are going to troll like this with your repetative nonsense. OOOH Manchurian. What an insult.

        • Tom

          December 21, 2021 at 9:59 pm

          Troll my ass.
          Non concerned & illegal citizens.
          You re a fool like Fauci & the rest of your Manchurians. DeSantis is on his side of the peeps. You are with the tyrants. LMAO
          America’s Gov the best.
          Govs mansion to WH, DC.

    • Tom

      December 21, 2021 at 10:04 pm

      He got the Covid vaccine in April.
      You owe him an apology, You scurrilous liar cheater.
      Non concerned Illegal citizen.

  • Karen Hall

    December 20, 2021 at 6:36 pm

    While I’m absolutely giddy at the thought of DeSatan catching COVID and not being properly vaccinated, I’m calling BS on this and just about everything else that comes out of his ugly pie hole. He’s pandering to his Neanderthal base. I’m putting my money on Karma.

    • Tom

      December 20, 2021 at 9:42 pm

      You are a pathetic pig.
      America’s Governor is the best.

    • Jerry

      December 21, 2021 at 11:08 pm

      He doesn’t need it. He’s a low-risk. I’m his age and healthy. I had COVID already. It was a 3-day cold, 1-day low grade fever, and a sore throat. That was it. I didn’t even get a cough. The virus doesn’t scare me. I’m very low risk, especially now that I have antibodies and already know how my body reacts to the virus. I’m confident I don’t need the vaccine. Especially since it won’t make me immune nor stop me from spreading it.

      And yes, I did have it. I tested positive for the virus when I was sick AND tested positive for antibodies when I tested later. For me, I’ve had common colds that hit me much worse than COVID.

      I’ve had reactions to other vaccines in the past. So me getting this jab will be a bigger risk for me than getting the virus again. These vaccines are nowhere near tested enough for me to be confident that they are safe.

      • Floyd

        December 27, 2021 at 11:48 pm

        More than 9 billion shots have been given to about 4.5 billion people or almost 60% of the planet’s population. There has literally never been anything that has been tested more than these vaccines, which have been unquestionably been proven safe,

        • Patti

          December 28, 2021 at 6:15 pm

          What is really sad to me is that Desatan doesn’t seem to even care about his wife whom I understand is treating for cancer and obviously very immune compromised. So sad he doesn’t even take her into consideration, his own wife and mother of his children. WOW. Kind of says it all.

Comments are closed.


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