{"id":75727,"date":"2023-12-21T15:54:08","date_gmt":"2023-12-21T15:54:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2023\/12\/21\/dod-to-study-whether-covid-19-vaccine-helped-or-hurt-troops\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T16:02:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T16:02:27","slug":"dod-to-study-whether-covid-19-vaccine-helped-or-hurt-troops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2023\/12\/21\/dod-to-study-whether-covid-19-vaccine-helped-or-hurt-troops\/","title":{"rendered":"DOD to study whether COVID-19 vaccine helped or hurt troops"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Lawmakers want military researchers to determine whether the COVID-19 vaccine<\/a> caused more harm than good for service members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Included in the annual defense authorization bill<\/a> passed by Congress earlier this month is language calling for \u201ca study to assess and evaluate any health conditions and adverse events arising in service members on active duty one year after receiving the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine<\/a>.\u201d Researchers will be required to report their findings back to lawmakers in December 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The vaccine has been a target of conservative lawmakers for years. In the fiscal 2023 defense authorization bill<\/a>, lawmakers repealed the Defense Department\u2019s mandate for all troops to receive the vaccine. This year\u2019s bill also contains a host of provisions related to potential reenlistment of individuals kicked out of the ranks for refusing the shots<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the research mandate \u2014 inserted by Republican House members during debate on the legislation \u2014 takes that further, again calling into question the safety of the vaccine.<\/p>\n\n\n\t