By Michael Hernandez
WASHINGTON (AA) - The US Defense Department will require all active-duty service members to get vaccinated against COVID-19 no later than mid-September, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced on Monday.
"I will seek the President's approval to make the vaccines mandatory no later than mid-September, or immediately upon the U.S. Food and Drug Agency (FDA) licensure, whichever comes first," Austin wrote in a memo to US forces.
The announcement comes as pressure builds for public and private employers to require vaccination, serving as a semi-mandate to get shots amid anger over the non-vaccinated allowing the virus to continue to spread and take lives.
Anthony Fauci, the US' top infectious disease expert, also voiced hope on Sunday that the FDA would grant full approval to coronavirus vaccines "within the next few weeks."
All three of the COVID-19 vaccines currently being administered in the US -- Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson -- are being given out under emergency authorizations. The Pfizer vaccine is expected to receive approval first within the coming weeks.
Austin said that in the interim the Pentagon "will be spent preparing for this transition," while maintaining a close eye on rising infection rates within the military due to the highly transmissible delta variant.
"I will not hesitate to act sooner or recommend a different course to the President if l feel the need to do so," Austin wrote.
"To defend this Nation, we need a healthy and ready force. I strongly encourage all DoD military and civilian personnel - as well as contractor personnel - to get vaccinated now and for military service members to not wait for the mandate."
Shortly after Austin's memo was made public, US President Joe Biden voiced strong support for his defense secretary's decision, saying he and Austin "share an unshakable commitment to making sure our troops have every tool they need to do their jobs as safely as possible."
"These vaccines will save lives. Period. They are safe. They are effective," he said. "We cannot let up in the fight against COVID-19, especially with the Delta variant spreading rapidly through unvaccinated populations."