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International Business Times UK
International Business Times UK
World
Crisnel Longino

'Completely Incompetent': Pentagon Slammed For Reinstating Flu Vaccine After Nearly 300 Fall Ill at Air Force Boot Camp

The Pentagon has reinstated mandatory flu vaccinations for military recruits after nearly 300 trainees fell ill during a flu outbreak at an Air Force boot camp, prompting fierce criticism of officials who made the vaccine optional just weeks earlier (Credit: Mufid Majnun/Unsplash)

Just weeks after the Pentagon made flu vaccinations optional in the name of 'medical autonomy', military officials have reversed course and restored the requirement for all new recruits. The decision comes amid a significant flu outbreak at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, where nearly 300 trainees have reportedly fallen ill.

Although defence officials insist the timing is merely coincidental, critics have seized on the development as evidence that the earlier policy change was a costly mistake.

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