(NEXSTAR) – The United States Army is planning to begin an “involuntary separation” process for soldiers who refuse to comply with the COVID-19 vaccination mandate.
The directive, announced Wednesday, would apply to “all Soldiers of the Regular Army and Soldiers of the Army National Guard/Army National Guard of the United States and the U.S. Army Reserve when serving on active duty for more than 30 days pursuant to Title 10, U.S. Code,” according to the directive, as signed by Secretary of the Army Christine E. Wormuth. The directive will also apply to cadets at the United States Military Academy (USMA) and Senior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (SROTC).
The policy would not apply to those with pending or approved exemptions due to medical, administrative or religious reasons. If a pending request for exemption is ultimately denied, the soldier who submitted the request will be ordered to comply with vaccination.
As of Jan. 26, the Army had said that at least 97% of active-duty soldiers had been fully or partially vaccinated, while 83% of those in the Reserve were fully or partially vaccinated. At that time, the Army further revealed that it had “relieved a total of six Regular Army leaders” and issued 3,073 “general officer written reprimands” to those who weren’t yet in compliance with the vaccine mandate, announced by the Pentagon in August.
The Army said Wednesday that commanders will begin the discharge process for those who refuse vaccination “immediately.”
“Army readiness depends on Soldiers who are prepared to train, deploy, fight and win our nation’s wars,” said Wormuth in a statement published at the official website of the U.S. Army. “Unvaccinated Soldiers present risk to the force and jeopardize readiness.”
Those who refuse vaccination can avoid involuntary separation by applying for an unqualified resignation (UQR) within 30 days of Wednesday’s directive, and announce their intentions to voluntarily separate before July 1, 2022. Those with retirement scheduled before July 1 are also exempt from the directive.
Aside from the Army, other branches of the U.S. Military, including the Navy, the Air Force, and the Marine Corps., have already begun discharge processes for those who refused the vaccination order.