Defense Secretary Rejects Oklahoma’s Request for Exemption From COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks while in Manama, Bahrain, on Nov. 20, 2021. Mazen Mahdi/AFP via Getty Images

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Monday rejected a request from Oklahoma authorities for an exemption for National Guardsmen from the military’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, a Republican, earlier this month asked Austin to suspend the vaccine requirement for guardsmen in Oklahoma, “as it asks them to potentially sacrifice their personal beliefs in order to not lose their jobs.”