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DeSantis signs law banning fluoride in drinking water throughout Florida

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Published  May 6, 2025 1:17pm EDT
Ron DeSantis
FOX 13 News

The Brief

    • Governor Ron DeSantis signed a law on Tuesday banning fluoride in drinking water throughout Florida.
    • Florida is the second U.S. state to ban fluoride, after Utah did earlier this year.
    • Cities across Florida have been divided over the past few years on whether fluoride should remain in public water.

MIAMI - Governor Ron DeSantis announced on Tuesday that he is banning fluoride from being added to drinking water in Florida.

Along with the new law banning local governments from the chemical, DeSantis also put a stop to geoengineering and weather modification activities intended to change the planet’s weather patterns and climate.

Big picture view:

Cities across Florida have been divided over the past few years on whether fluoride should remain in public water.

What they're saying:

"It's forced medication when they are jamming fluoride into your water supply," DeSantis said. "And they did it because if you have fluoride it will help with dental, and I'm not saying that's not true, but we have other ways where people can get access to Fluoride."

The CDC has supported fluoride in public water to benefit people’s dental health and cavity prevention.

According to the National Library of Medicine, too much fluoride can cause dental fluorosis.

"There is nothing preventing you, in your house, from adding fluoride to your water," said DeSantis. If that's what you think is best for your family, then you still, of course, have the ability to do that."

Locally, Lakeland and Winter Haven have voted to keep it out.

Florida is the second U.S. state to ban fluoride, after Utah did earlier this year.

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Florida’s republican-controlled house passed the bill seven days ago before it headed to the governor’s desk to become law.

During the press conference in Miami, Florida State Senator Lleana Garcia took a moment to gather herself while speaking and had to sit down for a few minutes before she resumed addressing the two new Florida laws.

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The Source: Information for this story was provided by the Florida Governor's Office and the National Library of Medicine.

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