December 9, 2022
It looks like the Covid19 vaccine mandate for the military is going away…oh – and there’s another $800 million for Ukraine pending.
Those provisions passed the House yesterday on a wide bipartisan basis (350-80). The 4,000 page, $858 billion National Defense Authorization Act – also known as the NDAA – is the bill that Congress must pass every year do determine how much money the united states will spend on our national defense.
And if that seems like a lot of money – it is. Actually its $45 billion more than the President asked for. It includes things like pay raises (4.6% increase) for active-duty, guard, reserve members and veterans — and of course it includes provisions to improve our own defense capabilities and cybersecurity.
In order to pass this bill compromises were made with Republicans who demanded the military repeal its covid19 vaccine mandate. 800-million dollars for Ukraine’s military assistance was added –that was $500 million more than the President asked for. The compromise also requires all that Ukraine money to be audited to make sure it’s going where it needs to go.
There are a lot of questions about what happens to the military members who were discharged from the military for refusing to take the vaccine. The republican provision does not include explicit language allowing those military members to be reinstated, instead it tells the military it can assess the situation on a case-by-case basis.
Now – this could change because it’s going to the Senate next. This has to pass before the end of the year and the big question – will President Biden sign it if that vaccine mandate repeal is included?
Full text of the National Defense Authorization bill from the House here.
