The Pentagon withdraws the vaccination mandate against Covid-19 for troops
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon has formally abandoned its Covid-19 vaccination mandate on Tuesday, but a new memo signed by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also gives commanders some discretion over how or whether to deploy troops who are not vaccinated.Austin's memo has been widely anticipated since legislation signed into law on December 23 gave him 30 days to rescind the mandate. The Department of Defense had already halted all related personnel actions, such as the discharge of troops that deflected the shot.“The Department will continue to promote and encourage vaccination against COVID-19 for all service members,” Austin said in the memo.…
