Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican presidential candidate, speaks at a Moms for Liberty meeting in Philadelphia on Friday.TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Two of the top public health officials in Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' administration — responsible for tracking and preventing the spread of communicable diseases — have left their positions in recent months.
The open positions include the head of the bureau, which oversees many of the state’s core public health functions. It has been vacant since last month, when former bureau chief Clayton Weiss transferred to the Florida Department of Corrections. Jason Salemi, an associate professor of epidemiology at the University of South Florida, said the vacant posts are"immensely important positions." He said it is important to find the qualified people for the roles, which can be difficult.
A spokesman for DeSantis’ office did not directly respond to questions, instead referring NBC News to the state Health Department's responses. Marty said there are epidemiologists throughout the state, but “there should be a central assessment of the data to help provide the right resources to the right site at the right time.”