Navy Approves Five Permanent Medical, No Religious Exemptions for COVID-19 Vaccine to Date

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The Navy has so far approved five exemptions for the required COVID-19 vaccination — all medical, a Navy official told USNI News.

The service has approved five permanent medical exemptions for the COVID-19 vaccine so far, said Navy spokesperson Lt. Cmdr. Andrew DeGarmo. No one has been separated or discharged, as of Nov. 1, for not receiving the vaccine and the final snapshot will likely not be ready until Nov. 28, DeGarmo said.

The Navy has not released how many administrative exemptions — which is the category religious exemptions fall under — have been granted in terms of the COVID-19 vaccine, which is mandatory for all active-duty sailors and reservists. However, the Navy has not approved a religious waiver for vaccinations in the past seven years, DeGarmo said.