- Hundreds of Air Force recruits in Texas have reportedly caught the flu.
- The outbreak comes a few months after the Pentagon lifted its policy requiring all military personnel to take the flu shot.
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the updated flu shot policy assures “medical autonomy.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced in April that his department would no longer require all American military personnel to receive annual flu shots — calling the influenza vaccine mandate “overly broad and not rational.”
The Pentagon, said Hegseth on his X account, was “once again restoring freedom” to the military by scrapping its long-held flu shot mandate.
But an ongoing flu outbreak infecting hundreds of Air Force recruits participating in basic training at San Antonio’s Lackland Air Force Base has reportedly prompted the Army, Navy and Air Force to once again require flu shots for basic trainees.
As reported by ABC News, at least 222 recruits at the Lackland base had been diagnosed with the flu as of Tuesday — and four had been hospitalized.
That’s a sharp increase from the 159 flu cases and two hospitalizations reported last week. The recent death of one recruit remains under investigation, though it is not yet clear whether it is tied to the outbreak, sources told ABC News.
Only about 40% of new recruits at the Air Force training base in San Antonio reportedly had a flu vaccination when the outbreak started early this month.
But with its new exception to the military’s updated policy making the flu shot voluntary, the Air Force has the goal of vaccinating all of the recruits in this recruit class and will vaccinate all new recruits arriving at the base, according to one of the sources.
In his April 20 memo announcing the Defense Department’s updated flu shot direction, Hegseth said military services and components were allowed to request exemptions to the flu vaccination policy.
Hegseth: ‘We will not force you’ to take flu shot
On April 21, Hegseth posted a video saying his department was immediately discarding the broad mandatory flu vaccine requirement.
“Under the disastrous Biden administration, this Pentagon waged an unrelenting war on our warriors on many fronts, including when it came to denying them simple medical autonomy and the freedom to express their religious convictions,” he said, referencing the DOD policy requiring all Armed Forces personnel to receive the COVID-19 vaccine during the pandemic.
Men and women in uniform, he added, “were forced to choose between their conscience and their country — even when those decisions posed no threat to our military readiness.”
That “era of betrayal” is over, said Hegseth.
“Under President Trump, the War Department continues to take decisive action to once again restore freedom and strength to our joint force. We’re seizing this moment to discard any absurd, overreaching mandates that only weaken our war fighting capabilities.
“In this case, this includes the universal flu vaccine and the mandate behind it.”
Requiring every service member to receive the annual flu vaccine “everywhere, in every circumstance, at all times,” added Hegseth, is far-reaching and irrational.
“Our new policy is simple: If you, an American warrior entrusted to defend this nation, believe that the flu vaccine is in your best interest, then you are free to take it. You should.
“But we will not force you — because your body, your faith and your convictions are not negotiable.”
Scrapping the mandatory flu vaccine policy is good common sense, he concluded.
“Rest assured that under President Trump, the War Department will always honor our brave warriors and do everything we can to restore the American people’s trust in their military for generations to come — and that’s why I’m proud to sign this new policy.”
When announced in April, the Pentagon’s updated flu shot policy prompted response from some in the public health community.
Dr. Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, told HuffPost that the decision is anything but common sense.
“It is the opposite of common sense,” said Adalja. “The influenza vaccine is an essential component of force protection and force resiliency. By removing influenza vaccine requirements in the military, (Hegseth) is weakening the military by making it more susceptible to influenza.”
Army also requiring flu shots — for some soldiers
Even as the Air Force returns to requiring flu shots for recruits at its San Antonio base, the Army is preparing in the coming weeks to also reinstate the flu vaccination requirement for troops deploying overseas, first responders, childcare workers, healthcare personnel, prison staff and soldiers taking part in certain large-scale training exercises, a service spokesperson told ABC News.
The ABC report noted that the services and their commanders often retain broad discretion to adjust how Pentagon directives are carried out, recognizing unique circumstances.
In basic training, for example, troops live in close quarters, sleeping in tightly packed bays, showering communally and spending much of the day within arm’s reach of one another as they move through drills, instruction and inspections.
In that environment, illness can quickly spread once one trainee gets sick. Troops are also constantly stressed and exhausted, conditions which can leave the immune system vulnerable.
Texas congressman pillories Pentagon’s flu shot policy
Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, is utilizing his own X account to lambaste Hegseth’s updated flu vaccine policy.
“After Secretary Hegseth scrapped the military’s flu vaccine mandate, it was only a matter of time before an outbreak occurred,” wrote Castro on June 19. “It was a reckless decision that put troops in harm’s way and undermined our military readiness.”
The Democratic lawmaker added his office is requesting the Pentagon provide an accounting of the ongoing flu outbreak at Lackland Air Force Base.
“For the well-being of our service members and community, public health policies must be guided by science, not politics.”