(Washington) The US Air Force has announced that it has fired 27 people because of their refusal to be vaccinated against COVID-19. They would be, according to officials, the first soldiers dismissed for having disobeyed the obligation to be vaccinated.
The Air Force had given its members until November 2 to receive their doses. Thousands of soldiers are said to have either refused or sought exemptions.
Forces spokeswoman Ann Stefanek said on Monday the 27 members are the first to be administratively released on vaccination grounds.
According to Mme Stefanek, everyone involved was in their first stage of enlistment. These are therefore young soldiers at the bottom of the hierarchy. While U.S. forces do not disclose the nature of a member release, a bill under consideration in Congress seeks to prevent the military from offering honorable or conditional releases honorable to members expelled for reasons of refusal of vaccine.
Earlier this year, the Pentagon imposed mandatory vaccination on all its members, including those on duty, members of the National Guard, and members of the reserve. Each of the departments of the armed forces is free to determine the deadline for vaccination, and the procedures to be followed.
The Air Force imposed the quickest deadline, which is why we are coming to the first layoffs. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has argued that vaccination is essential to maintaining healthy military forces and preserving the United States’ ability to respond to a national security crisis.
None of the 27 individuals discharged by the Air Force sought medical, administrative or religious exemptions, Mr.me Stefanek. According to several officials from various military services, the Air Force is the only department to have gone so far so far to be able to fire members for their refusal of the vaccine.
Officially, these 27 soldiers were dismissed for refusing to obey an order.
The fact remains that dismissals for refusing to obey an order are not uncommon in the military ranks. In the first three quarters of 2021, around 1,800 air force members were fired for this reason.
According to the most recent air force data, more than 1,000 members have refused to be vaccinated and more than 4,700 others are seeking religious exemption. As of last week, just over 97% of active air force members had received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
In the case of members of the Navy and Marine Corps, they had until November 28 to get vaccinated. The reserve still has until December 28.
Army soldiers have until Wednesday and members of the National Guard or the reserve still have until June 30 to do so.