Sailors who reject the vaccine and do not have a pending or approved exemption request could lose out on education benefits and bonus pay, among other things.
Navy leaders are concerned about increased Russian submarine activity in the North Atlantic and Chinese submarine activity in the Pacific. The U.S. homeland is no longer a sanctuary from such threats, they warn.
The ship is expected to arrive in Haiti “by the end of the week,” and is equipped with a surgical team along with landing craft capability. Soldiers, Marines also deploy.
Failure to maintain presence in the Arctic would “cede the space to the Russians or somebody else,” Lewis said, adding that it could also become a space where conflict arises.
Sailors selected for the program will keep their current paygrade while collecting a paycheck and attending undergraduate courses full-time, along with receiving a $10,000 annual tuition stipend.