By Rachel Schilke | Washington Examiner
West Point ’95 graduate Congressman Warren Davidson is introducing a bill that would compensate veterans for vaccine injuries developed under the Defense Department‘s “unjust” COVID-19 mandates.
The bill, the Justice For Vaccine Injured Veterans Act, would grant disability compensation to veterans who suffered side effects of the COVID-19 vaccine. Veterans and service members who received the COVID-19 vaccine during the Defense Department’s mandate — from August 2021, when the memo came out, until January 2023, when Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin rescinded the measure — and developed myocarditis, pericarditis, Guillan-Barre syndrome, or thrombosis within one year of their vaccinations will be eligible for disability compensation.
“COVID-19 posed limited risks to young, fit, healthy people,” Davidson said in a statement.
“Nevertheless, Joe Biden’s Department of Defense mandated that our nation’s warriors be vaccinated or forced out.
Sadly, some of them have become vaccine-injured veterans due to adverse effects.
Our nation has a moral obligation to care for them. This bill makes that happen.”
If signed into law, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Denis McDonough and his successors would be granted the option to add other conditions if they notify appropriate congressional committees. McDonough would be required to report on the total number of claims for disability compensation that are submitted, as well as the status of the claims, every 60 days.
The bill from Davidson, a Freedom Caucus member, has several co-sponsors from both the hard-line caucus and other Republicans. Reps. Morgan Griffith (R-VA), Eli Crane (R-AZ), Dan Bishop (R-NC), Bill Posey (R-FL), Barry Moore (R-AL), Troy Nehls (R-TX), Randy Weber (R-TX), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Diana Harshbarger (R-TN), Thomas Massie (R-KY), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Matt Rosendale (R-MT), Greg Steube (R-FL), Brian Mast (R-FL), Eric Burlison (R-MO), Mary Miller (R-IL), Neal Dunn (R-FL), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), Mike Carey (R-OH), Pat Fallon (R-TX), Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL), and Paul Gosar (R-AZ) have signed on to the bill.
The legislation extends from a 2021 memo from Austin that required the full vaccination of all members of the U.S. armed forces. The secretary announced a 98% vaccination rate by December 2021. Roughly 8,400 service members were discharged from the military for refusing to get the vaccine — despite some requesting “reasonable” exemptions, such as over religious beliefs, according to a release from Davidson’s office.
House Republicans, in recent years, have attempted to pass several bills to address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent vaccine mandates on service members and veterans.
In January 2023, shortly after Austin rescinded the mandate, a group of GOP members in the new House Republican majority cosponsored the Vaccine Discharge Parity Act to provide discharged service members eligibility for the Montgomery and Post-9/11 GI Bill education benefits. Rep. Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI), the lead author of the bill, introduced it in the 117th Congress, but it did not pass. In the 118th Congress, the bill’s latest action was subcommittee hearings in March 2023.
In December 2023, Luna and her husband sued the Defense Department over his discharge from the National Guard after he refused to receive the COVID-19 vaccine over “sincerely held religious beliefs.” As a result, the two incurred “significant financial injury,” including the “loss of healthcare, spousal benefits, and survivor benefits as provided for by the military.” The lawsuit is still ongoing in Florida, the Washington Examiner confirmed.
Rep. Warren Davidson Introduces The Justice For Vaccine Injured Veterans Act (Press Release, 2 May 24)
Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH) introduced the Justice For Vaccine Injured Veterans Act today, alongside 22 other House colleagues.
This legislation allows service members to receive disability compensation for any vaccine injuries they may have developed under the Department of Defense’s unjust COVID-19 mandate.
“COVID-19 posed limited risks to young, fit, healthy people. Nevertheless, Joe Biden’s Department of Defense mandated that our nation’s warriors be vaccinated or forced out. Sadly, some of them have become vaccine-injured veterans due to adverse effects. Our nation has a moral obligation to care for them. This bill makes that happen.” said Rep. Davidson (R-OH)
The Justice For Vaccine Injured Veterans Act is cosponsored by Reps. Griffith, Crane, Bishop, Posey, Moore (AL), Nehls, Weber, Biggs Harshbarger, Massie, Greene, Rosendale, Steube, Mast, Burlison, Miller (IL), Dunn, Boebert, Carey, Fallon, Luna, and Gosar.
Background:
In August 2021, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin issued a memorandum entitled, “Mandatory Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination of Department of Defense Service Members.” This memo demanded the full vaccination of all members of the Armed Forces.
More than 8,400 service members refused to comply with this mandate and were forced out of the military. In addition, reasonable exemptions from the vaccine mandate, such as religious beliefs, were virtually all ignored or rejected. However, Secretary Austin called this mandate “enormously successful” as they hit a 98 percent vaccination rate by December 2021.
In January 2023, Secretary Austin was forced to rescind this memorandum. Nevertheless, service members who complied with the vaccines were susceptible to potential side effects of the vaccine.
This legislation corrects this injustice and allows service members to be made whole by:
Amending 38 USC Chapter 11 to add certain COVID-19 vaccine-related injuries as presumptive conditions. If an individual has a presumptive condition, then they only need to meet the service requirements for the presumption.
Any service member or veteran who received the COVID-19 vaccine, during the timeframe of the DOD mandate, and subsequently developed myocarditis, pericarditis, Guillan-Barre syndrome, or thrombosis within one year of their vaccination will be presumed eligible for disability compensation.
The Secretary of Veterans Affairs also has the option to add other conditions if they notify the appropriate congressional committees.
This legislation requires the Secretary to report on the total number of claims submitted and the status of such claims every 60 days.
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