Login
The Pentagon revised its flu vaccine policy for some, but not all, service members, according to a May 29 memo, first reported on today by The Associated Press.
Under the revised policy, reserve members, which include the National Guard, aren’t mandated to get the flu shot unless they are called to active duty for 30 consecutive days or more. If they choose to get the vaccine, the U.S. Department of War (formerly Department of Defense) won’t compensate them for their time and expense.
Active-duty service members are still required to get the vaccine.
According to the memo by U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Steve Feinberg:
“All Active Component Service members are required to receive the annual seasonal influenza immunization or obtain an exemption (i.e., medical or administrative). Reserve Component Service members activated for 30 consecutive days or more are required to receive the seasonal influenza immunization or obtain an exemption. During an outbreak, pandemic influenza immunizations will be required or recommended as appropriate, depending on the immunization’s regulatory status at the time of the outbreak.”
A Pentagon official today confirmed that they changed the policy, telling The Defender:
“On May 29, 2025, the Department released updated policy guidance on seasonal influenza immunizations, reflecting common-sense revisions to existing requirements.
“There are no changes to policy for active-duty Service members, who are still required to receive the annual flu vaccine. Likewise, requirements for civilian employees will continue to be based on occupational risk for contagion and spread. For example, all healthcare workers are required to receive the flu vaccine.”
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth drew attention to the May memo on Wednesday when he retweeted a celebratory post from a National Guard member who said, “I found out today that for the first time in over a decade, I won’t be forced to get a flu shot this fall for the privilege of serving my state and country.”
Military flight surgeon Lt. Col. Theresa Long told The Defender that service members are still trying to get clear information about the COVID-19 vaccine and the full implications of its impact on the health of service members.
“I think a lot of service members are really struggling, like the rest of the country, with the loss of confidence in our regulatory agencies to truly, truly ensure these things are safe,” she said. “So I don’t think we’re very different from anybody else on this.”
Long spoke in her personal capacity, stating that her opinions were her own and do not reflect those of the U.S. Army, the U.S. Department of Defense or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Service members are required to get numerous vaccines, Long said.
“I think, all of a sudden, service members who have always accepted that getting vaccines was part of the job are now questioning the health impacts of a career’s worth of vaccines,” she said.
Pam Long, director of Children’s Health Defense Military Chapter and Army Veteran of the Medical Service Corps, underscored that the May 29 announcement applies only to military members in the reserve and the National Guard. The vaccine is still mandated for the majority of the armed forces.
And if the reserves are called to active duty, they will have to receive the shot, she said.
The change is minor and protects a contract with flu providers that is likely worth more than a billion dollars, she said.
This article was funded by critical thinkers like you.
The Defender is 100% reader-supported. No corporate sponsors. No paywalls. Our writers and editors rely on you to fund stories like this that mainstream media won’t write.
COVID vaccine mandates cost military ‘perhaps billions’ in lost personnel
Both women said the military is still facing a more important issue: Thousands of service members were discharged from the military for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine, and few — or possibly none — have been reinstated, despite the executive order issued in January saying they would be.
“There’s an additional 95,000 who left, allegedly, voluntarily to avoid punishment, and lost everything,” Pam Long said.
Today, many more service members with years of impeccable, honorable service will face dishonorable discharge if they refuse a flu vaccine, she said.
Such a discharge has lasting career effects. For example, pilots who receive dishonorable discharges can never fly commercial aircraft.
The cost to the military in terms of the loss of trained personnel following the COVID-19 vaccine requirement was astronomical, Theresa Long said.
“The COVID-19 mandates resulted in the loss of millions, perhaps billions, of dollars in human assets and a disruption to our force that has probably never before occurred in peacetime,” she said.
Related articles in The Defender