Florida Becomes Second State to Ban Fluoride in Public Water
Florida has become the second state to ban the addition of fluoride to public water systems, following Utah’s decision earlier this month.
Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation this week prohibiting certain additives in water systems that do not meet specified requirements, including fluoride. The new law takes effect July 1.
“There’s risks associated for pregnant women, for young people, for kids,” DeSantis said during the bill signing. “Yes, use fluoride for your teeth, that’s fine, but forcing it into the water supply is basically forced medication on people. They don’t have a choice; you’re taking that away from them.”
DeSantis linked the fluoride ban to broader concerns over public health mandates, using government overreach during the COVID-19 pandemic as an example.
“They tried to push a lot of policies on people,” DeSantis said, referencing the pandemic. “I think some of these people think that they know better for you than you do for yourself. They think because they have medical training or they have this that they should just be able to decree how we live our lives. That proved disastrous during COVID. A lot of the things they were advocating not only didn’t work, they caused a lot of harm.”
“I think fluoride is a good example because what they’re basically saying is that they’re ignoring any studies that have shown that there could be issues,” he continued. “They say. ‘Well, it’s good for your teeth so we should just force it.’”
“We certainly now in our society in 2025 have the ability to deliver fluoride through toothpaste and all these other things. You don’t get to force it and take away people’s choices. The whole crux of the issue is you should be able to make decisions on the basis of informed consent,” DeSantis added.
Local governments in Florida had already begun acting on their own. Last month, Miami-Dade County commissioners voted 8–2 to ban fluoride in the county’s water system. Commissioner Roberto Gonzalez called fluoride a “neurotoxin” and cited studies that showed it “should not be in the water.”
After Utah enacted its ban, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced he would form a task force to review federal policy and push for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to end its recommendation that fluoride be added to public water.
