Castro, Houlahan, Cisneros Slam Pentagon for Lackland Flu Outbreak, Push for Flu Vaccine Requirement

Castro, Houlahan, Cisneros Slam Pentagon for Lackland Flu Outbreak, Push for Flu Vaccine Requirement

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Congresswoman Chrissy Houlahan (PA-06), and Congressman Gil Cisneros (CA-31) held a press conference to provide updates on the flu outbreak at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio and to push the Pentagon to restore its vaccine mandate for all servicemembers.

Reps. Castro, Houlahan, and Cisneros push Pentagon to fully restore its vaccine mandate. Watch livestream here.

"The Air Force confirmed that trainee Keon McDaniel died from the flu during the outbreak at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio," said Congressman Castro. "This is a tragedy that could have been prevented were it not for the reckless actions of Secretary Hegseth. I introduced an amendment with Rep. Houlahan to reinstate the flu vaccine mandate for all servicemembers, which Republicans in Congress promptly rejected. I will continue to push for the Pentagon to fully restore its vaccine mandate and protect lives. Our military must be guided by science, not politics."

"When our troops volunteer to risk their lives for our country, the least we can do is not ask them to risk their lives because their leaders abandoned decades of military medicine," said Congresswoman Houlahan. "The House Rules Committee's refusal to make our amendment in order was a missed opportunity to right Secretary Hegseth's wrong and to put military readiness ahead of politics. We owe our servicemembers better."

"As the former Undersecretary of Defense at the Pentagon, I personally oversaw the DoD Health Agency. I know firsthand why we kept up with these vaccine requirements. The recent flu outbreak at Lackland Air Force Base could have been easily prevented if Secretary Hegseth had not been so short-sighted. I'm proud to support my colleagues, Congressman Castro and Congresswoman Houlahan, in urging the DoD to revert to their policy of mandatory military vaccinations. Any policy affecting our servicemembers' quality of life should be guided by science," said Congressman Cisneros.

BACKGROUND:

Last week, Reps. Castro and Houlahan co-sponsored an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to require military servicemembers to be vaccinated for influenza. This amendment comes after a flu outbreak at Joint Base San Antonio in Rep. Castro's district that spread to nearly 300 servicemembers. House Republicans rejected the amendment.