The Biden Administration has previously admitted that it is not the federal government's role to enforce vaccine mandates. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. condemned the mid-morning attack. The Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines do not need fetal cell lines for development or production but were tested on fetal cell lines replicated from a fetus aborted in the 1970s to ensure their efficacy. "We will continue to promote and encourage COVID-19 vaccination for all personnel to ensure readiness, facilitate mission accomplishment, and protect the force.". The NAVADMIN, referencing the injunction, prevents adverse action against sailors who will not get the COVID-19 vaccine and submitted a religious exemptions request. WASHINGTON The Air Force has discharged 27 people for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine, making them what officials believe are the first service members to be removed for disobeying the. They argue that their. Rachel Cohen joined Air Force Times as senior reporter in March 2021. . In his order, OConnor granted an injunction against the Biden administration and the Department of Defense, preventing them from enforcing the vaccine mandate against any of the named service members who had applied for a religious exemption. Night shifts arent popular, especially on Friday night, and things like that. Are there major differences here? The service branches must notify the Pentagon that they've made the changes no later than March 17. And lets start by talking a bit about your clients, where they are in the Air Force vaccine exemption process and what led you to file the suit? The Navy already denied these exemptions, but O'Connor. AFLDS has also pushed ivermectin and. And at least in the Starbucks is that Ive been in recently where theyve been packed in like sardines. I know, off the top of my head, the number in the Navy is somewhere near 4,100. The Supreme Court ruled in March 2022 that the sea service was allowed to reassign sailors who had refused the shot and filed exemption requests to nonoperational commands. Im willing to go through that. And usually when somebody is willing to go through those measures, that demonstrates a degree of sincerity. Unlike VARES that is questioned a lot by the totally compromised medical establishment for accuracy, the U.S. military DMED (Defense Medical Epidemiology Database) reporting system is only submitted by military doctors and qualifies every single ICD (International Classification of Diseases) code in the military for Tricare billing to Humana Insurance covering over 6 million military personal. Top Pentagon officials do not plan to alter their current "lawful orders" requiring the coronavirus shots for troops, unless they are granted waivers for medical or religious purposes, the. A vaccine lawsuit is filed in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, instead of regular state or federal courts like other drug injury claims. The World Health Organization approved Covaxin for emergency use in late 2021, making it a viable option for airmen who object to the three main U.S. shots. OConnormade note of thisin his order, calling the process for seeking a religious exemption nothing more than theater, stating that the Navy merely rubber-stamps each denial, and stressing that the record overwhelmingly demonstrates that the Navys religious-accommodation process is an exercise in futility.. Theres a case to be made for turning these lawsuits into class action matters, Staver said, so that individual service members dont have to sue or just another case. Ross said such questions were speculative and not at issue in the case before the court. So for example, in a different context, somebody who says that theyre a Sabbath observer, and they cannot work on the Sabbath, but that theyre willing to trade ships with somebody, most of the cases Ive seen, theyre actually willing to take, what most people consider be a less favorable shift. Lawyers are waiting to see if a federal court in Georgia will stop the vaccine mandate nationwide through another class-action preliminary injunction as well. Religious freedom laws are set up to avoid a circumstance where the Navy, or the military or the government, is doing a faith test, to determine whether or not you really believe what youre supposed to believe, Griffin said. The Texas lawsuit also states the plaintiffs are willing to continue to wear masks, social distance and take mandatory COVID-19 tests, rather than get vaccinated. Jared Serbu: Got it. At 1,038, the Marine Corps leads the military branches for the most separations. They include the small risk of myocarditis, which has anecdotally occurred in 1,626 U.S. residents out of more than 200 million fully vaccinated, with the highest risk in men under 24. They have similar objections to their Texas counterparts, from opposition to abortion to concerns about modifying their bodies. The Army also announced in a Friday press release that ongoing reviews of COVID vaccine exemption requests, records of soldiers who requested COVID vaccine exemptions, vaccine requirements for accessions or pre-commissioning programs, and travel restrictions based solely on COVID vaccination status will be removed or amended. And they recognize that theres almost a presumption of belief. Also missing from the lawsuits are any new religious conversion, or simply the possibility that they were previously unaware of the role of replicated fetal stem cells in pharmaceutical development, that would explain why they never objected to any vaccines or medications before. Feb. 23, 2023. Editors note: This story has been updated with information from the hearing. The government responded to the lawsuit by pointing out that immunization requirements are common in the military beginning with the Continental Army under George Washington and that vaccines and are essential to preventing the transmission of diseases in close quarters. Assuming, maybe Im assuming too much. In late August, Pfizers vaccine received full approval under the brand name Comirnaty. . The story seems pretty similar to whats going on with these airmen. Plaintiffs sincerely held religious beliefs that their bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit and that they are to glorify God with their bodies lays the foundation for everything they do, consume, or inject into their bodies, according to the Florida lawsuit. And now people will be able to take the analysis Supreme Court used and say, Okay, the way that they analyzed this issue, that might give us some indication of how they would analyze other issues, right. COVID-19 vaccines are proven to be very safe and effective at preventing COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths. All rights reserved. Another plaintiff is fighting in court after trying to retire one alternative to vaccination the Air Force offered. I think one of the militarys concerns is whats the limiting principle here? Read Next: The Navy's Top Enlisted Sailor Is Ready for You to Ask Him Anything. The government really cant scrutinize belief very far.. 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The next stop in the litigation is likely to be an appeal by the Department of Defense and the Biden administration to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. I mean, this is quickly becoming a national security issue for our nation. The temporary restraining order means the military cannot punish airmen and Space Force guardians whose application for a religious exemption to one of the federally endorsed vaccines was denied or is still being processed. Lawyers for a group of Navy SEALS and other Navy personnel who refuse to be vaccinated for religious reasons told a 5th U.S. Commercial airlines has said, you know what, were gonna lift the mask mandate. Military officials announced this week that, after months of warnings, they have . 2:41 . It took four years and was licensed in 1967. In December, the Air Force announced it had discharged 27 people for refusing to get the COVID . She covers operations, policy, personnel, leadership and other issues affecting service members. Punishing SEALs for simply asking for a religious accommodation is purely vindictive and punitive. They argue that their 1st Amendment rights are being infringed upon, because their sincerely held religious beliefs prevent them from receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. Although certain COVID-19 vaccines are associated with a slightly increased risk of blood clotting or heart inflammation, COVID-19 itself is associated with a higher rate of these and other conditions. The Florida case began with a Navy and Marine Corps officer in 2021, but has soon ballooned to 36 plaintiffs from all military branches as well as some civilian Defense Department employees. And that is textbook discrimination, right? Similar to the Navy, the Marine Corps is no longer stopping unvaccinated Marines from deployments. The Marine Corps separated 165 Marines over the past week due to their refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Until any harm is remedied, according to Bruns, the case is still active. Need help accessing the FCC Public File due to a disability? When you treat people who have a medical exemption for more favorably than you treat somebody who has a religious exemption, that is textbook discrimination, and thats whats happening. A ruling in that case, issued this past November by the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, upheld previous wins by attorneys representing the service members over the last year and took aim at the Air Force's process of approving religious exemptions. Right? So everywhere else in society has been able to figure this out, but our military hasnt because they take such an iron fisted, draconian approach to everything. Nov. 2, 2021. A timeline of when vaccines are due was left up to the . The World Health Organization approved Covaxin for emergency use in late 2021, making it a viable option for airmen who object to the three main U.S. shots. Military leaders have long argued that to maintain unit health and troop readiness, troops have for decades been required to get as many as 17 vaccines, particularly those who are deploying overseas. The Navy comes in second with a total of 469 separations, which includes 50 this past week. Earlier in the case: Eglin AFB officers part of federal court challenge to military vaccine mandate Related:Motion to halt military COVID-19 vaccine mandate fails; federal trial date set The 18 . A U.S. Navy officer is suing the leaders of the Defense Department and the Navy because they have denied his waiver requests to exempt him from getting the mandated COVID-19 vaccine. The Air Force number is probably in the same ballpark. What the government will have to prove, in both cases, is that while its granted thousands of medical and administrative exemptions though many of those are temporary that the high bar for approval of religious exemptions is necessary for keeping the force healthy and deployable. From this foundation they make studied and reasonable decisions about what is good and what is not good or may not be good for their bodies.. The lawsuit is one of two that have grabbed headlines in recent months, as the military has imposed mandatory vaccination deadlines that have since lapsed for all of the services and their components, save the Army National Guard and Army Reserve. DOD Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Gilbert R. Cisneros Jr., A group of lawsuit plaintiffs, including four Air Force officers and a Secret Service agent, have asked a federal court to block the Biden administration's coronavirus vaccination mandates,. Overall, scientific evidence indicates that the benefits of vaccines largely . Related: Navy Lifts COVID-19 Vaccine Requirement for Deployments. Mike Berry, general counsel for First Liberty Institute,said: Forcing a service member to choose between their faith and serving their country is abhorrent to the Constitution and Americas values . Quite the contrary, they view life whether their own or that of their fellow servicemembers as sacred and deserving protection.. Theyre not following federal law. On Friday, President Joe Biden signed the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2023, which repeals the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for service members. While in Texas, the sailors offered descriptions of their jobs, in Florida, the biographical information goes into training, deployments and expertise, attempting to make the case that their involuntary discharges would be a huge loss. Jared Serbu: Yeah, theres a ton. Same thing on airplanes, right? The content of this website reflects the current thinking of the United States Department of Health and Human Services on the topics addressed and does not create or confer any rights for or on any person and does not operate to bind the Department or the public. When they inquired about seeking religious accommodation for the vaccine, the Navy informed many of them that they could face court-martial or involuntary separation if they refused to take the vaccine. The Pentagon formally dropped the requirement in January following a December vote in Congress to end the mandate. All told the lawsuit includes 26 SEALs from the original complaint, plus five special warfare combatant crewmen, five divers and one explosive ordnance disposal technician who joined the case in late January. Jared Serbu: This case seems remarkably similar to another case that I think First Liberty was also counsel on with a group of Navy SEALs before the very same judge, I believe too. Copyright 2023 Hubbard Radio Washington DC, LLC. I think we win under the First Amendment, because you have individualized exemptions with medical exemptions, but not religious exemptions.. Hes one of the attorneys representing the airmen challenging the mandate, and he spoke more to Jared Serbu on theFederal Drive with Tom Temin. By Bethany Blankley (The Center Square) Military leaders will testify on Tuesday before the Military Personnel Subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee about the impact of the Department of Defense's COVID-19 vaccine mandate on DOD employees and military service members. Trident Order #12 also implemented the COVID-19 vaccine mandate at the command level for Naval Special Warfare forces, setting a deadline of compliance for October 17, 2021," the SEALs' legal team . Ryan Bruce, a Marine Corps spokesman, told Military.com. Rabies shots are required only for some service members in certain career fields. Any sailors who submitted a religious exemption for the COVID-19 vaccine can continue in the Navy under the injunction, according to NAVADMIN 102/22. According to the First Liberty Institute, the public interest law firm representing the service members, each of the denials appeared to be identical, suggesting the Navy had not taken any of the religious exemption requests seriously. The vaccine mandate divided Americans and has remained a contentious political issue. Based on his Roman Catholic Christian faith and absolute opposition to abortion, he cannot accept a vaccine that has been manufactured, or whose efficacy has been tested and proved, using aborted fetal cells, the Florida lawsuit alleges, on behalf of a Coast Guard pilot. The number of exemptions has fluctuated over the last several months as some people decided to get the shots or leave the service instead of seeking accommodation. The policy does allow commanders to "implement Health Protection Measures at any time or manner deemed necessary in support of operational safety and effectiveness." Nor do they mention the host of common medications that also use these stem cells, including Tylenol, Advil/Motrin, aspirin, Tums, Pepto Bismol, Benadryl, Sudafed and Claritin. Its really the same thing in the military context with this vaccine, where theyre saying, Look, teleworking or, doing a lot of these other measures, right, social distancing, masking, testing, whatever the case might be. And the way that they are accomplishing their compelling interest is the least restrictive means on the persons religious beliefs. Mondays arguments were heard by Duncan and Ho, both nominated to the 5th Circuit by President Donald Trump, and James Graves, a nominee of President Barack Obama. All 16 service members joined the lawsuit anonymously, listing in the filing only their currently assigned bases and statuses in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, or reserve components. Each week, Defense Reporter Jared Serbu speaks with the managers of the federal government's largest department. The question is, whats the bigger risk to readiness: Discharging skilled, expensively trained service members for refusing to get vaccinated, or allowing them to continue serving with the potential to become infected with COVID-19, experience serious illness and potentially long-lasting side effects? Telling Plaintiffs they must accept or receive a shot they oppose according to their sincerely held religious beliefs, or face court martial, dishonorable discharge, and other life altering disciplinary measures, disgraces the sacrifices these heroes have made, according to the lawsuit. And they have different ranks, different different job responsibilities in the Air Force, a number of them are actually pilots in the Air Force. And youll see headline after headline talking about the recruiting and retention woes that plague our military right now. The only difference is really is that each branch of the military has their own internal regulations and policies for how they adjudicate these things. The lawsuit, in which 14 men and two women serving in the military are named as plaintiffs, names U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, three U.S. military service secretaries and other. Our military, I mean, you can open any news feed that you want. The US military has approved religious exemptions to its Covid-19 vaccine mandate for 15 service members out of approximately 16,000 requests, according to the latest data from the services.