Note: The Covid-19 military vaccine mandate has since been repealed in the passage of the National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, signed into law by President Biden on Dec. 23.
The following is an excerpt from Task & Purpose.
Speaking at the Reagan National Defense Forum in Simi Valley, California on Saturday [Dec. 3] Gen. David Berger said, in regards to the vaccine mandate, that “Where it is having an impact for sure is on recruiting, where in parts of the country there’s still myths and misbeliefs about the backstory behind it,” according to Military.com.
“There was not accurate information out early on and it was very politicized and people make decisions and they still have those same beliefs. That’s hard to work your way past,” Berger said in response to a question at the forum. “You talk to me in the cafeteria, and one of my first questions is, ‘Do I have to get that vaccine?’ And you go, ‘Yeah, you do.’ Ok, I’ll talk to you later. It’s that fast.”
The Marine Corps met its recruiting quotas for 2022, but recruiting in general remains a struggle and an ongoing concern for all the services.
The Army missed its 2022 goals by 25% — approximately 15,000 soldiers. To help make up for the shortfall, the service has even introduced the Future Soldier Prep Course, a kind of basic training for basic training, designed to acclimate potential recruits who otherwise don’t meet the minimum physical or aptitude requirements for enlisting.
The head of Air Force recruiting is even personally reviewing tattoos of potential enlistees to help expedite the recruiting process.
According to the latest Marine Corps data on Covid-19 vaccines, released on Dec. 1, 96% of active duty Marines are fully vaccinated and 99% are partially so.
The numbers for the Reserve component are similar, with 96% both fully or partially vaccinated.
There are currently 333 approved medical or administrative exemptions, while 23 religious exemptions have been granted.
As of Dec. 1, 3,717 Marines have been separated from the service for vaccine refusals.
Link to article here.
