{"id":62944,"date":"2018-10-02T10:09:35","date_gmt":"2018-10-02T10:09:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/10\/02\/126000-service-members-in-crosshairs-for-separation-as-deploy-or-get-out-takes-effect\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T12:04:56","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T12:04:56","slug":"126000-service-members-in-crosshairs-for-separation-as-deploy-or-get-out-takes-effect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2018\/10\/02\/126000-service-members-in-crosshairs-for-separation-as-deploy-or-get-out-takes-effect\/","title":{"rendered":"126,000 service members in crosshairs for separation as DoD\u2019s \u2018deploy or get out\u2019 policy takes effect"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Pentagon\u2019s hard line on troop readiness took effect Monday, and 126,000 service members now find themselves on a path to separation if they do not become deployable<\/a> in the next 12 months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDeploy or get out” <\/a>was an early policy priority of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to improve the overall readiness of U.S. military forces. It was formalized in February and gave the services until Oct. 1 to be ready to begin holding troops accountable. Those intervening months also gave troops time to prepare, to get rid of administrative, legal or medical blocks that may have previously kept them in a non-deployable status.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cExcluding trainees, approximately 6 percent (126,000) of the total force \u2014 active duty, National Guard and Reserve \u2014 were non-deployable as of Aug. 31, 2018,\u201d DoD said in a statement to Military Times. \u201cThis includes temporary as well as permanent non-deployable service members. The reasons vary, but they are predominantly medical.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of that 126,000 total, 66,000 are non-deployable due to illness or injury, DoD said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of that 126,000 total, 24,000 are considered permanently non-deployable and were pending a disability evaluation that could lead to the service member\u2019s transition out of the military, DoD said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs Secretary Mattis has said before, \u2019every action will be designed to ensure our military is ready to fight today and in the future.\u2019 This new department-wide retention policy is based on the underlying premise that in order to build and maintain a ready, lethal force, all military members must be deployable,” said Pentagon press secretary Dana White.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are some exceptions<\/a>. Pregnant and post-partum service members are exempt, as are service members whose injuries were a result of combat operations. Other exemptions may be granted by the service secretaries on a case-by-case basis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The policy was put in place to stop service members who had learned to game the system to keep from deploying, which had put a harder burden on those who continued to fill open spots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s that disparity the policy is trying to address, said Master Sgt. Rob Couture, a spokesman for the Joint Chiefs of Staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re trying to get after fairness,” Couture said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And even though the policy did not officially take effect until Monday, it\u2019s pending arrival over the last few months may have had a chilling effect as the numbers of forces on non-deployable rosters dropped dramatically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In January, DoD had said that approximately 11 percent, or 235,000, of the 2.1 million personnel serving on active duty, in the reserves or National Guard were non-deployable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of that January total:<\/p>\n\n\n\n