The Marine Corps has now fired more than 200 military personnel for refusing to follow COVID-19 vaccination warrants
Tori J. Ross
2 min read
- the
Marines Corps has now released 206 members for refusing to be vaccinated againstCOVID-19[female[feminine . - Active-duty Marines and Reserve members were to be fully immunized by November 14 and December 14, respectively.
United States
Under the mandate, all active-duty Marines and Reserve members were to be fully immunized by November 14 and December 14, respectively. Jay Hernandez, spokesperson for Marine Corps Aviation, told Insider in a statement that members who fail to obtain a “pending or approved administrative exemption, medical exemption or religious accommodation, or appeal, will be processed for administrative separation “.
“All current exemption requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis,” Hernandez said in the statement. “Each request will be fully taken into consideration in the light of the facts and circumstances presented in the request. “
Currently, 94% of active duty members are fully vaccinated, while 83% of reserves are fully vaccinated, according to Marine Corps data. Hernandez told Insider in the statement that the Marine Corps “recognizes COVID-19 as a preparedness issue.”
“The rate at which the disease is transmitted between individuals has increased the risk to our Marines and the Marine Corps mission,” Hernandez said. “We are confident that the vaccine protects our Marines, our communities and the nation.”
To date, the service has approved 1,007 administrative or medical exemptions. The Marine Corps also received a total of 3,247 requests for religious exemption from the vaccine, of which 3,115 were processed and none were approved.
All members of the maritime services withdrawn from service for refusing vaccines are protected from dishonorable discharges under protections put in place by the National Defense Authorization Act of 2022, promulgated by
