Pentagon’s mandatory flu vaccine policy ends

Kathryn Palmer

and Mary Walrath-Holdridge

USA TODAY

Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth announced the military is doing away with a longstanding vaccination policy which required service members to receive the flu shot.

In a video posted to X on April 21, Hegseth called the new policy a move to 'restore freedom and strength' to U.S. forces. He criticized the previous mandate as 'overly broad and not rational.'

'We’re seizing this moment to discard any absurd, overreaching mandates that only weaken our war-fighting capabilities,' Hegseth said in the video announcement. 'In this case, this includes the universal flu vaccine and the mandate behind it.'

The Pentagon declined to share additional details about the policy, including the effective date, when contacted by USA TODAY.

The revocation of the flu vaccine requirement comes just under a year after the Pentagon scaled down its mandatory seasonal influenza shot policy, saying it applied only to service members and only 'when doing so most directly contributes to readiness.'

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends annual flu vaccines for adults and children 6 months and older. The agency says the vaccine has been shown to reduce the risk of flu-related illnesses and potentially serious flu complications that can result in hospitalization or death.

In his announcement, Hegseth compared the mandatory vaccination to COVID-19 vaccine requirements. He said the new policy is a choice individual service members can make for themselves.

'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,' he said. 'But we will not force you, because your body, your faith, your convictions are not negotiable.'

The U.S. military has a long history of requiring vaccinations and has provided mass immunizations to soldiers throughout its history. Researchers have tracked one of the first influenza vaccine mandates for military personnel to 1945.

The Pentagon’s policy is not the only change to flu vaccine recommendations under the Trump administration.

The CDC issued a memo in January removing universal recommendations for childhood vaccines that protect against rotavirus, flu, meningococcal disease, COVID-19 and hepatitis A and B. Instead, it said these vaccines are subject to 'shared decision-making,' a process during which parents consult with health care providers on whether to administer the shots.

Some of these changes, specifically those concerning COVID-19 and hepatitis B immunizations, were blocked by a federal judge in March. The Department of Health and Human Services has vowed to appeal the decision. In the meantime, the official CDC web page for the flu, last updated in September, still recommends the flu vaccine for 'everyone 6 months and older in the United States, with rare exception.'

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth compared the military’s vaccination mandate to COVID-19 vaccine requirements. He said the new policy on the flu vaccine is a choice individual service members can make for themselves.

Nathan Howard/REUTERS