Pres. Joe Biden Directs Defense Department to Plan Mandatory COVID Vaccine Among Military Members

By Joshua Summers Jul 30 2021, 01:56 AM EDT

President Joe Biden directed the Department of Defense to look into "how and when" to add the COVID vaccination to the list of required vaccinations for military members.

ABC News reported that Biden's reaching out to the Department of Defense was included in a fact sheet released to the reporters on Thursday, July 29.

"Our men and women in uniform who protect this country from grave threats should be protected as much as possible from getting COVID-19," the president said.

Joe Biden further noted that COVID vaccination is important as "troops serve in places throughout the world," including locations where vaccinations are low, and coronavirus is rampant.

In a statement also on Thursday, Pentagon press secretary Jamal Brown said Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin would begin consulting their medical professionals and the Joint Chiefs of Staff to determine when and what recommendations to make to the president.

Brown added that all military personnel would have to attest to their vaccine status in accordance with the president's guidance, and those unvaccinated would be subject to regular testing, mandatory mask use, and other restrictions.

Pentagon press secretary John Kirby earlier said that making the COVID vaccine mandatory for military personnel would start once the Food and Drug Administration moves the shot from emergency authorization to full approval, The Hill reported.

Joe Biden Requires Federal Employees to Get Vaccinated or Undergo Testing

The inclusion of COVID vaccines as a requirement to military members came as Joe Biden announced on Thursday that federal employees and onsite contractors would be required to verify they have been vaccinated or face regular testing, mandatory masking, and other restrictions.

NBC News reported the said individuals would also be subjected to restrictions on official travel.

"I know people talk about freedom. But I learned, growing up at school and from my parents, with freedom comes responsibility," Joe Biden noted.

Apart from announcing the new guidelines, the president also called on states, territories, and local governments to incentivize vaccination by offering $100 to those who would get vaccinated.

Joe Biden noted that small and medium-sized businesses that offer paid leave to get their families vaccinated should be reimbursed.

Despite his call for vaccine incentives, the president acknowledged the move would be "unfair" for those who were inoculated already. However, he underscored that if it would help beat the virus, it should be implemented.

Joe Biden also encouraged school districts to establish pop-up vaccine clinics to help reach younger people ahead of the new school year.

"We all benefit if we can get more people vaccinated," the president said.

Joe Biden on Vaccine Hesitant people

Joe Biden also pleaded with unvaccinated Americans to get vaccinated as the Delta variant continues to wreak havoc in the U.S. The president also highlighted that unvaccinated individuals affect other people.

"Your decision to be unvaccinated people impacts someone else. Unvaccinated people spread the virus. They get sick and fill up our hospitals," the president said, adding that there will be no hospital beds available for those individuals who suffer from other diseases such as heart attack.

"If in fact, you are unvaccinated, you present a problem," Biden noted.

ABC 7 reported that about 60 percent of American adults were known to be fully vaccinated. Meanwhile, the president's goal of 70 percent of American adults to be partially inoculated with COVID vaccines has yet to be reached, with the latest figure at 69.3 percent.

This article is owned by Latin Post

Written by: Joshua Summers

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