Ralph Abraham’s decision to end the Louisiana Department of Health’s promotion of mass vaccination isn’t just shortsighted—it’s cruel, reckless, and a reflection of the worst kind of elitist policymaking. This decision will have devastating consequences, particularly for Black and low-income communities in Louisiana, where vaccine promotion at community events, churches, and schools is a critical lifeline in public health.
Let’s be clear: This is not about “individual choice.” This is about knowingly withdrawing public health resources from communities that already suffer disproportionately from preventable diseases. Black Louisianans have long been the targets of misinformation, medical distrust, and systemic neglect. And now, instead of using the power of government to ensure access to lifesaving vaccines, Abraham has chosen to amplify that neglect by actively discouraging the outreach efforts that keep people safe.
This move reeks of the kind of ignorant, narrow-minded policymaking that we have come to expect from Louisiana’s Republican leadership—one that imposes harmful laws on communities they neither understand nor care about. Whether it’s gutting our public schools, eliminating the charity hospital system, or now, abandoning efforts to prevent infectious disease outbreaks, the cruelty seems to know no bounds.
The Louisiana Department of Health is being forced into silence on one of the most basic public health measures—vaccination—by a Republican administration that cares more about ideological posturing than saving lives. Abraham’s disdain for public health expertise is especially galling given that this announcement came on the same day Robert F. Kennedy Jr., one of the most notorious vaccine conspiracy theorists of our time, was sworn in as Trump’s health secretary.
Public health isn’t about politics – it’s about protecting people. For more than a century, vaccines have saved millions of lives. This is settled science. But by dismantling the very outreach efforts that have been so effective, Abraham is setting Louisiana up for a public health disaster.
There is no excuse for this level of recklessness. If this Republican administration spent half as much time investing in real solutions as they do sabotaging public health efforts, Louisiana might not be at the bottom of nearly every health ranking in the country. Abraham’s decision will lead to preventable deaths, and he will be responsible for every single one of them.
We will not stand by and allow our communities to be sacrificed for the sake of political games. We will continue to fight for public health, for science, and for the basic dignity of our people — because clearly, Ralph Abraham and his Republican allies won’t.