A Florida state health agency run by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration is under scrutiny after it launched a website targeting a November ballot measure that would codify abortion rights in the state.
The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration, run by DeSantis political appointee Jason Weida, launched the website Thursday — replete with the state seal — warning that Amendment 4 "threatens women’s safety."
"Florida is protecting life," reads a prominent headline atop the website. "Don’t let the fearmongers lie to you."
DeSantis, who signed a six-week abortion ban earlier this year, is against Amendment 4.
Critics say that the AHCA, the agency in charge of running Florida’s Medicaid program, is doing the bidding of DeSantis by using taxpayer money to campaign against a citizen-led initiative, a blatant violation of state law, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
"Using state agency resources for campaign purposes is illegal, and we’re looking into any and all recourse to take this website down," Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said in a statement.
Florida’s ACLU chief called it an attempt to "sabotage the vote."
"This kind of propaganda issued by the state, using taxpayer money and operating outside of the political process sets a dangerous precedent," Executive Director Bacardi Jackson said in a statement. "This is what we would expect to see from an authoritarian regime, not in the so-called 'Free State of Florida.'"
Weida in a post on X on Thursday said the website was launched to "combat the lies and disinformation surround Florida’s abortion laws."
Similarly, the AHCA said in an unsigned statement to media outlets Thursday that "the law is the law; however many in the media have not covered it correctly," The Hill reported.
"Our new transparency page serves to educate Floridians on the state’s current abortion law, and provide information on the impacts of a proposed policy change on the ballot in November," read the statement.
Amendment 4 would provide a constitutional right to abortion before viability, generally 24 weeks, or when "necessary to protect the patient's health, as determined by the patient's healthcare provider." The measure would need 60% of voters to approve it to undo the state’s six-week ban.