Pentagon announces COVID-19 vaccines will be mandatory for troops by mid-September

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin issued a memo Monday saying he will ask the president to approve making COVID-19 vaccines a requirement by mid-September. "I have every confidence that Service leadership and your commanders will implement this new vaccination program with professionalism, skill, and compassion," Austin said in the memo. 

Austin said he will seek to make the vaccine mandatory either by mid-September or immediately upon the FDA's full approval, whichever comes first. Vaccines in the military are voluntary when under emergency use authorization by the FDA. The president has the authority to waive the rule and make the vaccine a requirement for personnel.   In a statement, President Biden said he "strongly" supported Austin's decision.