September 28, 2022
The Honorable Lloyd J. Austin III Secretary of Defense
1000 Defense Pentagon Washington, DC 20301-1100
Dear Secretary Austin:
We write to seek clarity on your position regarding the vaccine mandate per your memorandum of 24 Aug 2021, Mandatory Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination of Department of Defense Service Members and request you provide us a briefing on the matter as soon as possible.
On September 19, 2022, President Biden told Scott Pelley of CBS news that “the pandemic is over.” Pandemic restrictions have been lifted across the country and state and federal courts have enjoined enforcement of employment-based vaccine mandates. It is our understanding that members of the Armed Forces are now one of only a few groups in the Executive Branch still subject to termination for failure to take the vaccine.