New law ends contentious COVID-19 vaccine mandate for US troops

WASHINGTON — U.S. military forces around the world will no longer be required to get the COVID19 vaccine, after the mandate was lifted under an $858 billion defense spending bill passed by Congress and signed into law Friday by President Joe Biden.

The department has 30 days to work out the details for rescinding the mandate. The Pentagon said Friday that in the meantime the military services would pause any personnel actions, such as discharging troops who refused the shot, and all troops would still be encouraged to get vaccinated and boosted.

Biden had opposed the Republican-backed provision, agreeing with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin that lifting the mandate was not in the best interests of the military, according to White House officials. But he ultimately accepted GOP demands in order to win passage of the legislation.

The contentious political issue, which has divided America, forced more than 8,400 troops out of the military for refusing to obey a lawful order when they declined to get the vaccine. Thousands of others have sought religious and medical exemptions.

The new law effectively ends those exemption requests, but questions remain about whether any limited restrictions may continue for troops on specific missions or assigned to areas of the world where vaccination is still required.

Austin was staunch in his desire to maintain the mandate, insisting the vaccine was necessary to protect the health of the force. And he and other defense leaders argued that for decades troops, particularly those deployed overseas, have been required to get as many as 17 different vaccines. No other vaccine mandates were affected by the new law.

But Congress agreed to rescind the mandate, with opponents reluctantly saying that perhaps it had already succeeded in getting the bulk of the force vaccinated.

After signing the defense bill Friday, Biden said in a statement that certain provisions “raise concerns,” but overall it “provides vital benefits and enhances access to justice for military personnel and their families.”

According to U.S. officials, the department will take at least some of the next 30 days to work out the details of rescinding the mandate and decide what specific orders will come from Austin and what, if any, flexibility he will leave to service secretaries and chiefs.

Defense officials familiar with the ongoing discussions said there have been spirited discussions during high-level meetings on the issue, and that service leaders stressed they want clear, specific guidance and for everyone to implement the new directive the same way.