ROA leads military and veterans groups, calling reinstatement and back pay the right thing to do for troops and readiness

WASHINGTON , DC, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, January 16, 2023 /EINPresswire.com/ -- With the Pentagon’s Aug. 24, 2021, and Nov. 30, 2021, requirements that members of the active and reserve military be vaccinated rescinded by the National Defense Authorization Act of 2023, ROA has urged President Biden to reinstate all service members discharged for not receiving the vaccine and be provided with 100 percent back pay. ROA further urges that the president halt any further processing of waiver requests.

“We cannot afford the dismissal of some 8,400 trained and qualified young service members who have sworn to serve their country,” ROA’s executive director, retired U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Jeff Phillips, wrote the president. “ROA believes that reinstating these patriots, granting them back pay, and stopping any further waiver processing, complies with the spirit of the law, enhances readiness by enhancing the force’s strength, and shows those who ‘are on the ramparts’ – and those considering joining their ranks – that America does right by its military.”

ROA, the nation’s only exclusive advocate for the Reserve and National Guard, is also the only military or veterans service organization to publicly call for reinstatement and back pay to date.

While mass inoculation campaigns have been conducted by the U.S. military as early as the Revolutionary War, the uniformed services cannot afford the bureaucratic expense and potential losses of tens of thousands involved in the COVID-related discharges.

With 96 percent of the total force now vaccinated, the threat COVID-19 poses to readiness is simply less than the threat posed by an ever-shrinking warfighting force, coupled with the greatest recruiting challenge in the history of the all-volunteer force.

ROA applauds Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin for taking swift action to comply with section 525 of the NDAA for FY 2023.

With the Pentagon’s under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness expected to issue further guidance to ensure uniform implementation of the recission memorandum, ROA looks forward to working with administration officials and Congress to ensure the right things are done for our readiness and for our troops and their families.

To read the letter, please click here.

Please contact ROA’s legislation and military policy director at mschwartzman@roa.org with any questions.

Matthew Schwartzman
Reserve Organization of America
mschwartzman@roa.org
+1 202-646-7713
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