Scores Fall Ill at Air Force Base After Hegseth Makes Flu Vaccine Optional

The defense secretary described the vaccine requirement, which he lifted in April, as an “absurd, overreaching” mandate.

NYTimes via https://archive.ph/NeuwP#selection-809.0-809.13 June 18, 2026

A major flu outbreak has sickened nearly 160 troops at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas less than two months after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that U.S. troops would no longer be required to be vaccinated for the flu, defense officials said.

The outbreak at the base in San Antonio raced through an Air Force Basic Military Training wing, where new recruits sleep on bunk beds in open bays and share meals at large communal tables.

“Under the disastrous Biden administration, this Pentagon waged an unrelenting war on our warriors on many fronts, including when it came to denying them simple medical autonomy and the freedom to express their religious convictions,” he said in a video announcing his decision in April.

“The reason it was mandatory was to enhance readiness,” Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi, the chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said shortly after the new policy was announced.

Edited June 18Jun 18 by JerryM

Golly, that must have come as a surprise!

So Whisky Pete is also a medical expert

This is the administration of unintended consequences.

The other news is regarding screwworm prevention.

In 2025, Trump and DOGE axed the program to combat New World Screwworm, stating that they had "saved" $1.5 million a year. Now they’re going to spend $1 billion in an emergency program to combat the Screwworm outbreak.

A major flu outbreak has sickened nearly 160 troops at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas less than two months after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that U.S. troops would no longer be required to be vaccinated for the flu, defense officials said.

What percentage of the personnel were otherwise scheduled to get a flu shot in the past 2 months? In the middle of the summer... Hardly flu season. And, as I recall, this year's flu shot was the wrong formulation for this year's flu strain anyway.

Besides. They got the flu and now they're fine. If they weren't I'm sure that would have been the headline.

1 hour ago, Front Row said:

This is the administration of unintended consequences.

The other news is regarding screwworm prevention.

In 2025, Trump and DOGE axed the program to combat New World Screwworm, stating that they had "saved" $1.5 million a year. Now they’re going to spend $1 billion in an emergency program to combat the Screwworm outbreak.

The Screw worm infections are directly related to cattle smuggling. Screw worm is common in Mexican and Central American cattle. The parasites are on the cattle smuggled in and spread once they are introduced into a new area.

You will find this article helpful. https://newsroom.wcs.org/News-Releases/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/23972/Illegal-Cattle-Trafficking-Is-Fueling-Dangerous-Resurgence-of-New-World-Screwworm.aspx

This has been warned against since 2024. Mexico did not take the necessary measures to curtail smuggling. The USA and its much touted secure southern border, is not well secured. When the USDA increased vigilance, cattle importers objected.

1 hour ago, impulse said:

What percentage of the personnel were otherwise scheduled to get a flu shot in the past 2 months?

Maggie Haberman wrote the article. Ask her. maggie.haberman <at> nytimes <dot>com

4-5 years ago , this headline would have read :

Covid outbreak at US airforce base.

In an administration of stupids, Pete is one of the worst.

'nuff said.

7 hours ago, impulse said:

What percentage of the personnel were otherwise scheduled to get a flu shot in the past 2 months? In the middle of the summer... Hardly flu season. And, as I recall, this year's flu shot was the wrong formulation for this year's flu strain anyway.

Besides. They got the flu and now they're fine. If they weren't I'm sure that would have been the headline.

if trump had something to do with it, its bad

7 hours ago, impulse said:

What percentage of the personnel were otherwise scheduled to get a flu shot in the past 2 months? In the middle of the summer... Hardly flu season. And, as I recall, this year's flu shot was the wrong formulation for this year's flu strain anyway.

Besides. They got the flu and now they're fine. If they weren't I'm sure that would have been the headline.

One Airman died. Two are hospitalised.

It was not the "wrong formulation". Multiple strains are in circulation at anyone time. Preliminary examination of VE indicates it met the threshold of 40% or more reduction in hospitalisations. 6 years on from watching "Dr" John Campbell Youtube videos (before he started grifting), one would think and learnt the difference between a sterilising vaccine and a non-sterilising vaccine. The vast majority of vaccines are non-sterilising, which means they do not prevent infection, but they prevent illness.

Hegseth allowed the opt out of the vaccine on the grounds their body, faith and convictions are not negotiable. Sounds like beardos are back on the menu.

While flu is described as "seasonal" and there are biological structural reasons why its virulance is facilitated in colder weather, its actually in circulation all year round. In varying degrees around the country. There's a nasty one doing the rounds in Eastern Canada right now, in the middle of a tri-country sporting tournament that still has a month to run.

Troops should not be given the choice which vaccines they will take, unless they can demonstrate religious conviction. And if so, then they need to reconsider their career, like what Hegseth told the Mormons.

These are mostly recruits. As part of Basic, you get your shots. The only reason the NHS targets the autumn for shots is the management of resources (hospital capacity), same in the US.

If you fall seriously ill, and you chose to not take the vaccine, then you should be medically discharged without pension. Essentially self-inflicted injury. FAFO.

It seems 60% of new recruits into the US military are gullible spineless crybabies. Good for the 35% who manned up and rolled up their left sleeve, and the 5% who rolled up their right sleeve.

The previous policy has now been reinstated. Vaccines are now mandatory.

It seems 60% of new recruits into the US military are gullible spineless crybabies. Good for the 35% who manned up and rolled up their left sleeve, and the 5% who rolled up their right sleeve.

Says the keyboard warrior.

There's a nasty one doing the rounds in Eastern Canada right now, in the middle of a tri-country sporting tournament that still has a month to run.

Did the Canucks reject the vaccines, too? You just mentioned a situation that has ZERO to do with Trump or Hegseth or RFK, Jr. Yet the OP (and you) seem to want to blame them.

Flu happens, vaccinated or not. You know what doesn't? Deleterious side effects. Those require a shot.

17 hours ago, Roadsternut said:

It seems 60% of new recruits into the US military are gullible spineless crybabies.

From the archive link OPO:

In the weeks since Mr. Hegseth’s vaccine policy took effect on April 21, only about 40 percent of Air Force trainees have opted to take the vaccine, which had previously been mandatory, an Air Force official said.

17 hours ago, Roadsternut said:

The previous policy has now been reinstated. Vaccines are now mandatory.

According to one US general, the reason they were (are) mandatory is a hedge to better ensure military rediness.

3 hours ago, ronnie50 said:

According to one US general, the reason they were (are) mandatory is a hedge to better ensure military rediness.

Yeah, to refuse a vaccine is basically being delinquent in your duties and admitting you're an idiot.

About 10 years ago, a British soldier, a veteran of multiple combat tours in the Middle East and the Balkans, took his family on holiday to Florida; Disney etc. On the flight home, he rapidly fell ill, so much so, that upon arrival, an ambulance was ready for him, and took him straight to the Royal Brompton.

He was crashing, dying. WBCs off the scale, so first mission was to stabilise, with fluids, and broad range IV antibiotics. 24-48 cultures didn't come back with anything, as did the presumptive PCRs. The soldier gradually recovered. Blood samples were sent to the chaps at Porton Down. Positive for toxins related to Bacillus anthracis (Anthrax). At some point in Florida he was exposed to inhaled Anthrax spores. No one knows where or how (possibly a zoo). For most people that would have been the end.

He had a very good level of personal fitness, but its considered that the vaccinations he had received prior to Iraq, likely saved him.

https://publications.ersnet.org/content/erj/42/1/285Tis

The vaccine, like virtually all the military vaccines, were not approved. They would have undergone trials, but on a much smaller scale than normal vaccines.

In Afghanistan, the for the wounded who made it to Bagram, the major cause of death was infection. My late father was former RAMC, and in retirement, he wrote a book on Sir Alfred Keogh. Alfred Keogh is one of the most important people in public health medicine. He joined up, as a doctor, to serve in the Boer War, and went out as a Major. Just a few years later, he came back a General. He continually raised, with bitterness, how poorly British soldiers were treated in Africa. Most did not died because of Boer bullets, but because of disease, such as Typhus. He institutionalised disease prevention. He wasn't a person given to making vaccines mandatory; as a medical man, for him the case was obvious. He favoured obtaining high uptake through military discipline, education and strong encouragement rather than through an explicit universal order mandating inoculation for all soldiers. Keogh went on to head the Army Medical Services, the predecessor to the RAMC, and was a power voice in the 1920s in the debate that resulted in the formation of the NHS.

Vaccine resistance, refusal, is born of ignorance. If in the military, what that means is you are willing to get sick rather than support your mates. If you are not prepared to support your mates, get out of the military, go find another calling,

I realise there will be people disagreeing with accepting vaccines, usual of the COVID-loon variety. Really don't care about them. On this pensioner-dominated forum, they are all pretty much at the end of their lives anyhow,

4 hours ago, JerryM said:

From the archive link OPO:

In the weeks since Mr. Hegseth’s vaccine policy took effect on April 21, only about 40 percent of Air Force trainees have opted to take the vaccine, which had previously been mandatory, an Air Force official said.

So what I said. Those refusing a flu shot are crybabies.

Can I make that Woke crybabies for added effect?

5 hours ago, impulse said:

Says the keyboard warrior.

Ah, says a 30 year veteran of Gravy Seal Six who is scared of needles.

Edited June 20Jun 20 by Roadsternut

22 hours ago, Yagoda said:

if trump had something to do with it, its bad

Yeah, I've noticed this too

3 hours ago, Roadsternut said:

I realise there will be people disagreeing with accepting vaccines, usual of the COVID-loon variety. Really don't care about them. On this pensioner-dominated forum, they are all pretty much at the end of their lives anyhow,

Yes, on the above Florida case. Yes on the here and now. All older people should take the elder flu shot.

36 minutes ago, ronnie50 said:

All older people should take the elder flu shot

i get a flu shot and pnuemonia shot because i travel

On 6/20/2026 at 3:12 PM, Yagoda said:

i get a flu shot and pnuemonia shot because i travel

If you mean the pneumococcal vaccine, then you only need it once, unless you are unusually frail, as generally it will offer lifetime protection. Those that need boosters fall into the compromised immune system (eg HIV positive), chronic kidney disease, or you've had a splenectomy.

If someone persuaded you you need it everytime you are traveling, and you are normally a healthy, not dying, person, I'm afraid they saw you coming. No particular health risk if you "over vaccinate". A meta study indicated:

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6925972/

The ACIP recommendations state that an excess dose of many live-virus vaccines and Haemophilus influenzae or hepatitis B vaccine has not been found to be harmful, but the risk for an (Adverse Event) might increase when excess doses are administered at an earlier time than the recommended interval for certain vaccines [e.g., tetanus toxoid vaccines and pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (23-valent)].

With bacterial vaccines, there isn't that much danger or flux in strain shift compared to viruses. Once a new strain appears, it generally stays in circulation. So yes to frequent reimmunisations against flu, because the way viruses naturally replicate will generate sero-variation. If you are looking at the old, but more widely available polysaccharide-base vaccines, go for the 23-valent shot (Pneumovax 23), not the 13-valent, if you can. 13 valent gives protection against only 13 strains. There are more recent Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (eg. Capvaxive https://www.fda.gov/media/179426/download?attachment).

4 hours ago, Roadsternut said:

If someone persuaded you you need it everytime you are traveling,

i follow the recommendations of my dr. vs some troll on the net. i have only had one pnuemonia shot as per his rec

SAC, the Strategic Air Command has been superseded by SAC, Stupid as Custard.

On 6/22/2026 at 12:20 PM, Yagoda said:

i follow the recommendations of my dr. vs some troll on the net. i have only had one pnuemonia shot as per his rec

I suspect you misspoke, as there is no such thing as a "pneumonia shot". Pneumonia is the condition, which can be caused by many different threat agents (virus, bacterial, fungal). The Pneumococcus vaccine gives protection against one of the forms of bacterial pneumonia. Your doctor will confirm.

You do not need the vaccination everytime you travel.

CDC guidance says if you need to revaccinate, you need to wait at least 5 years in between. They specifically caution again more than one revaccination in a lifetime.

NICE takes a slightly different view. No revaccination unless they are in a risk group (eg. loss of spleen).

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4213993/

https://bnf.nice.org.uk/treatment-summaries/pneumococcal-vaccine/

44 minutes ago, Roadsternut said:

Pneumococcus vaccine gives protection against one of the forms of bacterial pneumonia

so its a pnuemonia vaccine lol.

45 minutes ago, Roadsternut said:

You do not need the vaccination everytime you travel

who says i do. if i was a homebody i wouldnt have needed a pnuemonia shot. just like i dont get hep b vaccine because i dont engage in risky homosexual behavior.

2 hours ago, Yagoda said:

so its a pnuemonia vaccine lol.

who says i do. if i was a homebody i wouldnt have needed a pnuemonia shot. just like i dont get hep b vaccine because i dont engage in risky homosexual behavior.

No, it is a vaccine against Pneumococcus infection (Streptococcus pneumoniae). The vaccine will also reduce the chances of the meningitis this bug causes, as well as sepsis (particularly if your are HIV positive). Its also one of the trigger organisms for septic arthritis. You don't seem to understand the difference between infection and illness, despite a recent Pandemic where lay folk, like yourself, were bombarded with technical terminology. You are still prone to getting viral pneumonia. You are still prone to bacterial pneumonia due to Haemophilus influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus ("Staph aureus") and its better known cousin MRSA. One of the odd effects of the vaccine is a phenomenon called serotype replacement. S. pneumoniae is known to have at least 100 serotypes (variations distinguished by antigen variation). Current vaccines cover 13-23 of these. Next generation vaccines will broaden the range. Vaccination can cause selection of other serotypes, ie previously minor serotypes become important, due to herd immunity brought about by the prevailing vaccines. We are at a state of constant war with the microbial world.

All of these bacteria, including S. pneumoniae, are what's called "commensals", but also opportunistic pathogens. What that means is we all have them, on our skin, on our mucosal linings. Most of us are asymptomatic carriers. In hospital, patients in ICU often develop bacterial pneumonia. These same bugs can also cause other serious diseases, in odd ways. My mother is a paraplegic due to S. aureus, one of the common skin bugs. This is the bug that most often is the cause of infection in a cut or wound. My mother underwent a routine colonoscopy, and 2 years later, was suddenly rendered a paraplegic as a result of this infection (when combined with a pain killer to treat the sore back she was experiencing at the time, likely infection arose during retrieval of a polyp for biopsy).

You referred to travel in the plural, not the singular. You've done this before, made mistakes in basic English syntax, redolent of a non-native English speaker. Give your use of a Russian user name, I have always assumed you are of Slavic origin, a first or second generation immigrant.

i get a flu shot and pnuemonia shot because i travel

rather than

i got a flu shot and pnuemonia [sic] shot for an up coming trip

Or

i had a flu shot and pnuemonia [sic] shot for a trip I made

The good news is now you have had a pneumococcus vaccination, you won't ever need another, and save a bit of money.

Not sure the world needed to know that you prefer non-risky homosexual behaviour over risky homosexual behaviour, but whatever makes you happy. I hope he's happy as well.

In regions where Hepatitis B is common, most people who are infected have been infected since birth. Before 1985, most community acquired infections were through tattoos and contaminated blood supplies and contaminated blood products. The major source were blood products derived from US convicts, and then exported. This wasn't in the form of whole blood, but mostly products such as plasma and purified clotting factors.

Pneumococcus vaccination is highly recommended for anyone aged over 65 years. Unless you are literally a Howard Hughes like hermit, vaccination is still a good idea, because you will come into contact with a carrier.

My my you seem all upset because I got a pneumonia shot. Or was it the stuff about homosexuals that bothered you.

25 minutes ago, Roadsternut said:

Pneumococcus vaccination is highly recommended for anyone aged over 65 years. Unless you are literally a Howard Hughes like hermit, vaccination is still a good idea, because you will come into contact with a carrier.

Pretty pathetic grammar and Syntax for someone that claims to be a native English speaker. I can assure you that once my and dislocated elbow heals up, my typing will improve as I will have two hands as opposed to one. Meanwhile, have you been vaccinated against hepatitis B?

I believe this is just the tip of the iceberg.
If you remove vaccinations, disease spreads quickly, especially in closed-society groups such as military bases... and schools.

Watch for news from the US Southern states. This fool will bring back Polio, Measles, and Smallpox!

It's blindingly obvious.................some leftie, commie soldiers have purposefully got themselves infected then wandered around the place licking plates, knives, forks and spoons........watch....there'll be arrests