The deadline for active-duty Air Force personnel to get fully vaccinated against COVID-19 is Tuesday, and officials estimate that up to 12,000 airmen won't hit that target, officials told The Washington Post.
The Air Force is the third-largest military service, with 324,000 active-duty airmen, and more than 94 percent are fully vaccinated and 1.8 percent partially vaccinated. Of those who have not yet received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, it's unclear how many are outright refusing to get vaccinated compared to those who are seeking a religious or medical exemption or are close to leaving the service.
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When people join the military, they are required to get several vaccines, including chickenpox and hepatitis A. Katherine L. Kuzminski, a military policy expert at the Center for a New American Security, told the Post she will be paying attention to whether there is a mass dismissal of personnel who refuse to get the COVID-19 vaccine, and if it will hit certain positions — like pilots or aircraft maintainers — harder than others. "The fact that it's a choice leading to potential loss to readiness is striking," Kuzminski said.
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