Hailey Ruane
Staff Writer
Starting on Feb. 2, soldiers in the Army who are not vaccinated and who do not plan on getting vaccinated began to be discharged. Prior to the Army making this decision, the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps had already gone through the process of discharging unvaccinated members. The Army is the last of these groups to have discharged members over their vaccination statuses, with Politico stating that the number of unvaccinated soldiers reaches over 3,300.
Although approximately 97% of soldiers in the Army are vaccinated, the majority of the remaining 3% are mixed with soldiers attempting to be exempt from the vaccine due to religious or medical reasons. Politico reports that 600 marines, sailors, and airmen have been discharged from the military or removed from training.
The number of people has lowered considerably when compared to numbers recorded in December versus within the past week. According to AP News, approximately 12,000 had previously refused the vaccination, while as of recently, that number has dropped to just over 3,300.
Requiring the vaccination of civilians has been up for debate in different settings, such as in schools and in the workplace. When President Biden first introduced the vaccine mandates, there were mixed reactions from fellow politicians. For example, South Carolina’s Attorney General, Alan Wilson, reported to The Guardian, “This rule is garbage, it’s unconstitutional and we will fight it.”
Wilson’s reaction summarizes many people’s responses to the mandate, and this is reflected within the army. Many believe it is unfair, which is why many soldiers have turned towards attempting to claim a religious exemption. According to AP News, this has been a valid excuse in the past for other topics, such as for having a reason to wear a headpiece or being allowed to keep a beard.
As of recently, many soldiers have been claiming religious exemptions, to the point where the high volume of requests from Covid-19 makes it more difficult to grant them. Multiple active-duty troops have had thousands of members requesting religious exemptions, which has caused the system to have delays in responses to the requests.
There have been mixed reactions from politicians in regards to the slowed response in religious exemptions. The governors of Alaska, Wyoming, Mississippi, Iowa and Nebraska requested an overall exemption in a letter to the Pentagon from the requirement, and explained to The New York Times that, “Setting punishment requirements for refusing to be Covid-19 vaccinated and requiring separation from each state National Guard if unvaccinated are beyond your constitutional and statutory authority.”
