Army re-enlists over 20 soldiers discharged for refusing COVID vaccine

The Army has reenlisted more than 20 soldiers who were discharged for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine, officials said Monday, rushing to implement President Donald Trump’s order that troops be rehired and given back pay.

Three people rejoined active duty Army service, and more than 20 came back either to the National Guard or the Reserve, the Army said. The soldiers have signed their contracts and were sworn in, and the active duty troops were reporting to their units, the Army said.

None of the other services has completed reenlistments yet, but all are reaching out to former troops. The Marine Corps, Air Force, Army and Navy set up new websites on Monday to provide information for service members looking to reenlist. And they are sending letters and emails and making calls to those who were discharged.

Trump has argued that the vaccine mandate wrongly pushed troops out and suggested that many would return. In an executive order signed a week after he took office, Trump said the vaccine mandate cost the military “some of our best people” and he vowed to “rehire every patriot who was fired from the military with … backpay.”

The Pentagon made the COVID-19 vaccine mandatory in August 2021 for all service members, including those in the National Guard and Reserve. Then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said getting the vaccine was critical to maintaining a healthy, ready force. The Pentagon dropped the mandate in January 2023.

According to Army spokesman Christopher Surridge, about 400 soldiers have inquired so far about the reenlistment program. Of those, about 100 are in the application process. The Army did not have estimates on how much it has given the soldiers in total back pay.

As of Friday, 472 Marines have indicated interest in learning more about returning. The Navy said about a half dozen sailors had so far expressed interest or sought more information, and the Air Force said it had not yet gotten any feedback from service members.


(AP Photo Lynn Sladky)