Naval Academy confirms it denied all religious vax exemption requests
USNA contradicted congressional accounts that some unvaccinated students have had diplomas withheld
By Kelly Laco | Fox News
The U.S. Naval Academy (USNA) confirmed Thursday that it denied all religious accommodation requests to the COVID-19 vaccine from midshipmen, but it also said that congressional complaints that current unvaccinated students have had their diplomas withheld are not accurate.
The confirmation on vaccination exemptions came after Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., and a handful of other Republican lawmakers sent a letter to Naval Vice Adm. Sean Buck on Tuesday that demanded information on how many exemptions had been granted by the USNA.
The lawmakers said that denying diplomas to otherwise qualified midshipmen is a waste of the country’s four-year investment in those people and will hurt military readiness at a time when all service branches are having trouble with recruitment and retention. One of Steube's constituents, a current USNA student, reported to him that they were denied a diploma after their religious accommodation request was rejected.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/naval-academy-confirms-denied-all-religious-vax-exemption-requests
