Coast Guard reaches milestone in COVID-19 vaccinations

The Coast Guard has reached a major milestone in the fight against COVID-19, according to a recent article on the MyCG website.

The article states that the Coast Guard has fully vaccinated against COVID-19 71.8% of its active duty workforce. Including active duty and reserve members, the Coast Guard has 69.2% of its membership fully vaccinated, with 71.5% with at least one dose.

The article also states “The Coast Guard is building on this milestone to fully vaccinate 100% of its total workforce.”

It is unclear how this milestone will be reached- at present the Coast Guard is not mandating that members get the vaccine. A recent article in Army Times states that the Army has directed commands to prepare to administer mandatory COVID-19 vaccines- it is unclear if the Coast Guard will do the same.

According to a Q&A section on the Coast Guard website’s COVID-19 information page, in response to the question “Will the Coast Guard require all service members to receive the vaccine?” the response reads “Currently, the vaccine is offered on a voluntary basis. Priority populations are highly encouraged to receive the vaccine. When formally licensed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a vaccine may become mandatory for military personnel, as is the case for the influenza vaccine.”

“Alternately, if the White House issues an order mandating vaccination for members of the armed forces, the vaccine may become required as a matter of policy.”