Cadets at the Air Force Academy may not be rewarded for their hard work with graduation or even be commissioned as military officers this month because of their refusal to be injected with the Covid vaccine. They may also be required to pay back tuition costs as well. This is the only military academy where cadets may face such penalties, so far. Within the Navy and the Army, not a single senior is being prevented from graduating due to vaccine refusals and graduations are in two weeks.

Lloyd Austin, the United States Defense Secretary, made the vaccine mandatory for service members. For decades, troops have been required to get as many as 17 vaccines in order to maintain the health of the force, especially those deployed overseas. On the first day of schooling, students go through a regimen of shots on their first day including measles, mumps, and rubella if they aren’t vaccinated for these already.

The question at hand by many is: Have exemption reviews by the military services been fair?

There have been multiple lawsuits previously filed against the vaccine mandate. Many of these lawsuits center around the very few service members being granted religious exemptions. The only reason the excuse of religion is being shot down is due to the historical context that very few military members have sought out these exemptions previous to the Covid vaccine. Remember, these service members receive upwards of 17 vaccinations…

“There are still two weeks until graduation, so their status could change as the cadets weigh their options.”

Lt. Col. Brian Maguire said.

The four cadets have been informed of the consequences they will face if they continue to refuse the vaccination. These four cadets are not the only ones experiencing such a thing as there are two juniors, one sophomore, and six freshmen who are also refusing the vaccine.

Students involved in disciplinary issues or similar problems are the ones who are required to pay back the tuition costs. The costs can be as much as $200,000, or more, and any final decision on repayment is made by the service secretary.

There have been massive amounts of discharged troops across all military branches. Nearly 4,000 active duty members are refusing vaccinations with 2,100 Marines, 900 Sailors, 500 Army soldiers, and 360 Airmen being thrown out.

Reed O’Conner, a U.S. District Judge, in January instated a preliminary injunction that prevents the Navy from disciplining or discharging 35 sailors who sued over the Navy’s vaccine policy. In April, Judge O’Conner agreed on the case to go forward with a class action suit and covered 4,000 sailors who have objected on religious grounds to being vaccinated.

In addition to Judge O’Conner, a federal judge in Ohio granted his own preliminary injunction which would block the Air Force from disciplining a dozen officers and some additional airmen and reservists who were seeking the religious exemptions.

The Air Force has approved only 73 religious exemptions. The Marines have approved 7. The Army has approved 8. According to military data, nearly 20,000 service members have asked for religious exemptions.

On the flip side, 99% of active duty Navy sailors and 98% of Air Force members, Marine Corps members, and Army members have gotten at least one shot.

Read more in-depth numbers HERE