Do Florida's taps flow with fluoride? It depends on where you live, but a new law may change that.

Community fluoridation, the process of adding fluoride to drinking water, has been a long-standing practice in municipalities across the country – until now. 

In Florida, the choice to add fluoride to the drinking water is left to local municipalities and counties. However, it might soon be banned statewide. If SB 700 – otherwise known as the Florida Farm Bill – passes this month, local governments will no longer have the choice to keep fluoride in their water. As of Tuesday, the bill is headed to the Senate floor for consideration.

Earlier this week, Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told the AP that he plans to advise the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) against recommending community fluoridation. Health leaders in local governments are also falling in line with Kennedy’s desire to eliminate fluoride from the drinking water. 

Most recently, Miami-Dade County commissioners voted on April 1 to remove fluoride from the drinking water, which will go into effect 30 days from the vote if Mayor Daniella Levine Cava does not veto it. All of Broward uses fluoridation, whereas in Palm Beach County, some municipalities add fluoride to the water, while others don't.

Fluoride is a naturally occurring element in groundwater and soil that is widely known to prevent tooth decay. It is also widely available in various topical dental products, like toothpaste and mouthwash. Fluoride can be toxic but only harmful to humans in high doses, according to the National Library of Medicine. Cities in the U.S. started adding fluoride to their water in 1945, and by 1970, about 43% of the U.S. population was receiving fluoridated water. In 2020, about 72% of the population received fluoridated water, according to the CDC. 

SB 700 prohibits the addition of any water additives not meant to “increase the quality of the water,” which includes additives used for “health-related purposes.” Yes, that means fluoride. 

The CDC calls community fluoridation one of the “10 greatest public health achievements,” yet it has been criticized by some health experts in recent years.   

In November, Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph A. Ladapo issued guidance recommending that local governments stop fluoridating their water. Since then, 14 different local Florida municipalities have stopped the practice, including Stuart and Ft. Pierce. Now Miami-Dade County – the most populous county in the state – is possibly next.  

Ladapo cited several studies linking fluoridated water to a low IQ and increased ADHD in children in other countries, as well as a federal court ruling from September 2024 concluding that the current recommended amount of fluoride additives (0.7 milligrams per liter) “presents an unreasonable risk of injury to health” – due to the toxicity of fluoride – and that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must take “regulatory action.” 

“It’s important to remember that the 0.7 milligrams per liter is a recommended dose, not a regulated dose,” Communications Director for the Florida Department of Health Jae Williams told MediaLab. “Local utilities have an opportunity to lead and do what’s best for their community.”

Williams also made the point that it’s not just the drinking water that contains fluoride additives. “The Pepsi you drink has fluoridated water in it; even the organic strawberries you eat have been watered with it,” said Williams. 

St. Lucie County commissioners in January voted to repeal a 1989 ordinance requiring county municipalities to add fluoride to the water, leaving the decision up to local municipalities. Ft. Pierce quickly followed and, later that week, announced that they “immediately discontinued” adding fluoride to the drinking water. 

Keith Saunders, Fort Pierce Utilities Authority (FPUA) Water Resources Superintendent, said it was as simple as turning off the pumps.

The equipment and infrastructure for adding fluoride to the water supply still remain, as the decision is “technically a pause” at this time, according to Saunders. 

Fluoride is a naturally occurring element in water, so it will remain at a low level.“The additive we were putting in to make it 0.7 milligrams per liter would have been gone within four days, even at the far reaches of our distribution system,” added Saunders. 

He also said discontinuing fluoride additives saves the FPUA $30,000-$40,000 a year, but that was “not the driving factor” to make the decision. 

Delray Beach commissioners voted (3-2) to keep fluoride in the drinking water in February, despite a visit from Ladapo, the state surgeon general.

“The studies are very consistent,” Ladapo said as he addressed the commissioners. “When there’s more fluoride present in the urine or blood of pregnant women or children, the children tend or have lower IQs, lower intelligence… and also potential behavioral changes,” referring to Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in kids. 

Ladapo also mentioned possible adverse effects on the thyroid as well as the pineal gland, which regulates sleeping patterns. 

Juli Casale, a Delray Beach commissioner, said she’s heard mixed opinions about community fluoridation from the Delray community. Casale was one of three commissioners who voted to keep it. 

“I think it's imperative to keep it,” Casale said, citing the widespread support of community fluoridation by the CDC and the American Dental Association. “We have a large population of underserved children [who would be affected]. To just take it out of the water would be concerning to me.” 

Casale is also concerned with the loss of power that local governments have to make decisions. “We’re a home rule state, so typically local municipalities make their own rules, but the governor has been implementing a lot of laws that are taking away municipalities' rights to control their city.”