Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo has revoked the nursing license of a Florida nurse who publicly wished severe childbirth injuries on White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, drawing swift condemnation from state officials and prompting decisive action from regulators.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced Wednesday that Lexie Lawler is no longer permitted to practice nursing in the state, praising Ladapo for acting quickly and forcefully in response to what he described as an egregious ethical violation. Uthmeier said the move sends a clear message that those entrusted with caring for patients will be held to high professional standards, regardless of politics.
“Effective today, Lexie Lawler is no longer allowed to practice nursing in Florida,” Uthmeier wrote in a post on X. “Making statements that wish pain and suffering on anyone, when those statements are directly related to one’s practice, is an ethical red line we should not cross.”
The announcement came one day after it became public that Lawler had been fired from her job following the viral spread of a TikTok video in which she directed graphic and vulgar comments toward Leavitt. Uthmeier made clear that termination alone was not sufficient, arguing that patient safety and trust in the medical profession demanded stronger consequences.
“Being fired isn’t good enough,” Uthmeier said earlier. “Any healthcare worker who fails to uphold his or her obligation to provide adequate, safe healthcare should not be licensed in Florida. No excuses!”
In a separate statement to Fox News Digital, Uthmeier underscored the seriousness of the issue, particularly given Lawler’s role as a labor and delivery nurse. “Women shouldn’t have to worry about a politically driven nurse who wishes them pain and suffering being in the delivery room during childbirth,” he said. “It’s evil. The Florida Board of Nursing must take action to keep this person away from patients permanently.”
Lawler’s TikTok video, which went viral after being shared by Libs of TikTok, sparked widespread backlash. In the video, Lawler said that as a labor and delivery nurse, it gave her “great joy” to wish Leavitt a fourth-degree tear during childbirth, using explicit and profane language to describe the injury.
A fourth-degree tear is the most severe form of obstetric tear, involving lacerations that extend through the perineal muscles and into the rectal lining. Such injuries typically require surgical repair and weeks of recovery, and not all patients fully recover without complications.
Following the backlash, Baptist Health confirmed that Lawler had been terminated from her position. In a statement to Boca Raton CBS affiliate 12 News, the health system said the comments did not reflect its values or the standards expected of healthcare professionals. “Following a prompt review, the individual is no longer employed by our health system,” the statement said.
The revocation of Lawler’s nursing license marks a rare and severe disciplinary step, underscoring Florida officials’ stance that political hostility has no place in patient care. State leaders framed the decision as necessary to protect patients and uphold the integrity of the medical profession, particularly in sensitive settings such as childbirth.
Uthmeier’s comments made clear that Florida intends to draw a firm line when healthcare professionals publicly express wishes of harm tied to their medical expertise, emphasizing that ethical obligations do not stop at the hospital door.
