Pfc. Antonio Lopez administers a seasonal influenza vaccine to a service member at a walk-in community flu shot event at Frontier Chapel, Fort Leavenworth, Kan., on Nov. 19, 2025. (Maria Christina Yager/Munson Army Health Center)
WASHINGTON — Two Democrats introduced an amendment Tuesday to the defense funding bill requiring all military service members be vaccinated for influenza following the outbreak at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas.
“No president or secretary should be able to play politics and put the health of our troops at risk,” said Rep. Joaquin Castro of Texas, whose district includes Lackland. “It took the Pentagon over a month to approve Lackland’s request to reinstate the mandate. In the meantime, many more trainees got sick.”
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the claim.
Since the outbreak in June, 284 trainees have contracted influenza and four have been hospitalized, Castro said. The amendment was introduced by Castro and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa.
The Air Force confirmed an influenza outbreak has affected the 37th Training Wing at Lackland during the past several weeks. Each year, more than 36,000 recruits come through the unit.
Keon McDaniel, a trainee in his sixth week of basic training, died on June 16 at Brooke Army Medical Center after experiencing a medical emergency on June 12. The incident is under investigation, and a comprehensive medical review is underway, the Air Force said in a statement.
There are no indications at this time of flu outbreaks occurring at other bases, Houlahan said.
The military has resumed requiring flu vaccines for some service members.
In April, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued the guidance making the annual influenza vaccine voluntary for all active and reserve component service members and DOD civilian personnel.
“We’re seizing this moment to discard any absurd, overreaching mandates that only weaken our warfighting capabilities,” Hegseth said in a video posted on X.
The U.S. military dates its flu vaccine requirement to 1945.
Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman and a senior adviser to Hegseth, said in a statement last week that Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Anthony Tata has granted exceptions to the Army, Navy and Air Force, as well as the National Security Agency and the Defense Health Agency.
“The decisions were based upon thorough risk assessments and are designed to maximize operational readiness, lethality and force generation, while safeguarding at-risk populations,” Parnell said.
The statement said that the services and departments are responsible for implementation.
The Army, Navy and Air Force are requiring flu vaccines for basic trainees, ABC News reported.
“When our troops volunteer to risk their lives for our country, the very, very, very least we can do is not ask them to risk their lives because their leaders have abandoned decades of science and military medicine,” said Houlahan, who is also an Air Force veteran.
