Republicans in the House of Representatives, led by Texas Rep. Pat Fallon, are urging the armed forces to end a policy that clawed back signing bonuses for soldiers who refused COVID-19 vaccines.
More than 8,000 soldiers across the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines were discharged for declining the shots before Congress formally rescinded the mandate in the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act. The Department of Defense (DOD) began clawing back recruitment bonuses from the discharged soldiers in January 2023, arguing the soldiers failed to complete the terms of their contracts. The Republicans argue military departments should use an exemption that allows them to return the bonuses to the soldiers if doing so is “contrary to the best interests of the United States” or harms other objectives.
“We believe that seeking repayment of signing bonuses from those who were discharged against their will qualifies for an exemption under each of these categories. We urge you to take immediate action to end this practice, allow service members to retain their bonuses, and establish a streamlined pathway back to active service for these individuals,” the eight Republicans wrote Tuesday to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall III, Army Secretary Christine Wormuth and Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro, in letters obtained exclusively by the Daily Caller.
Read the Navy letter here:
06.20.23 Follow Up Military Secretary Response to _ Ltr to SECDEF Re COVID Signing Bonuses_with Signatures_… by Michael Ginsberg on Scribd
Top military officials argued the mandate was necessary to preserve force readiness. The DOD struggled to manage COVID-19 outbreaks in several instances before the vaccine was required, and officials throughout the chain of command were aware of the problem. USS Theodore Roosevelt commander Capt. Brett Crozier was fired in April 2020 after alerting Navy officials to an outbreak aboard his ship. Air Force officials were forced to apologize to airmen in Texas after they were quarantined in July 2021 in garbage-strewn and mold-infested barracks.
The 2023 NDAA did not reinstate discharged service-members who declined the vaccine. Republicans argue the initial mandate and subsequent discharges have harmed military recruitment and retention efforts. All three branches that received the letters are reportedly on track to miss their fiscal year 2023 recruiting targets. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Amid Recruiting Woes, Officers Allege The Army Is Preventing Their Scheduled Discharge)
“As the U.S. military contends with an unprecedented recruitment crisis, we must do everything we can to right the ship. It was bad enough the military kicked out service-members for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine, it is criminal that they continue to pursue repayment of bonuses for those separated against their will. The Armed Services need to focus on meeting their recruiting targets and retaining qualified servicemen and women, rather than enforcing punitive and divisive policies. Each service has the authority to end this practice, and I urge them to do so immediately,” Fallon said in a statement.