• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

2

Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place

3

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster

1

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

2

Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place

3

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
HealthCoronavirus

The U.S. military had a COVID vaccine skepticism problem. But now it’s seeing a massive jump in shots

By
Sy Mukherjee
Sy Mukherjee
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Sy Mukherjee
Sy Mukherjee
Down Arrow Button Icon
May 21, 2021, 3:59 PM ET
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

The U.S. military has a somewhat complicated relationship with the COVID vaccination effort. On one hand, servicemembers are critical to this immunization campaign, with more than 6,000 deployed by the Department of Defense (DOD) to facilitate the rollout. On the other hand, there’s been striking discrepancies when it comes to servicemembers’ enthusiasm for COVID vaccines. The good news? It seems like the pendulum is swinging with a massive uptick among U.S. military vaccinations in the past month.

There are about 1.4 million active duty military servicemembers in America. One month ago, some 500,000 of them had received a single dose of a COVID vaccine. Fast-forward to today and the number stands at 775,500.

So what’s led to this turnaround? One critical element has been pressure on the Biden administration to get vaccination numbers up within the federal government as it pitches a mass immunization plea to the public. In the past few weeks, the military opened up COVID vaccinations to all servicemembers and not just those who were among the special tiers.

That’s the key driver of the vaccination boom in the military. But the nuances of vaccine skepticism play a large role here. For instance, studies have shown the Black servicemembers are more hesitant than others to immediately get vaccinated, and younger people just don’t think they have to. There are also vaccine discrepancies within the various arms of the military.

“Between the four military branches, the Army had the lowest rate of vaccination,” according to the Military Times. “Marines were 52% more likely to get vaccinated than soldiers. Sailors and airmen were respectively 45% and 15% more likely.”

The spotty data around servicemembers’ vaccination rates is a political, and public health, headache for the Biden administration as it tries to get millions more Americans their COVID shots. If a soldier is administering a shot to you at a mass vaccination site refuses to get one themselves, there’s plenty of opportunity for mixed messages.

That means the surreal growth in vaccination rates in the military is a welcome sign. The question is whether it’s durable. Red tape may have been keeping certain servicemembers from getting their COVID vaccine if they wanted one. But what matters will be convincing the true hold-outs and skeptics to become immunized.

Our mission to make business better is fueled by readers like you. To enjoy unlimited access to our journalism, subscribe today.
About the Author
By Sy Mukherjee
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Health

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Health

kean
PoliticsCongress
Tom Kean discloses depression diagnosis behind 4-month absence from Congress: ‘until you experience it yourself, it is difficult to fully understand’
By Mike Catalini, Joey Cappelletti and The Associated PressJune 30, 2026
15 hours ago
‘Cop on your wrist’: Wearables offer tons of data, but people are still going to sleep to Netflix and TikTok
HealthBrainstorm Tech
‘Cop on your wrist’: Wearables offer tons of data, but people are still going to sleep to Netflix and TikTok
By Amanda GerutJune 29, 2026
2 days ago
usa
EnvironmentHeat
Long and dangerous heat wave to roast America from Dallas to New York through July 4th holiday
By Marc Levy and The Associated PressJune 29, 2026
2 days ago
France suffers 1,000 additional deaths in just the past week amid record heat wave—and 85% involved people aged 65 and above
EuropeWeather and forecasting
France suffers 1,000 additional deaths in just the past week amid record heat wave—and 85% involved people aged 65 and above
By Kirsten Grieshaber, John Leicester and The Associated PressJune 28, 2026
3 days ago
Peter Rahal speaks on stage in front of a black and purple background.
RetailFood and drink
David Protein CEO says ‘diet trends are over’ because of GLP-1s: ‘What’s next is really hard to predict’
By Sasha RogelbergJune 28, 2026
3 days ago
What 3 million Americans quitting Obamacare shows: Republicans couldn’t repeal it, so they made it unaffordable
HealthHealth Insurance
What 3 million Americans quitting Obamacare shows: Republicans couldn’t repeal it, so they made it unaffordable
By Ali Swenson and The Associated PressJune 27, 2026
3 days ago

Most Popular

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
Success
MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
By Sydney LakeJune 25, 2026
6 days ago
Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
Success
Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
By Sydney LakeJune 29, 2026
2 days ago
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
Success
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
By Preston ForeJune 27, 2026
4 days ago
'Humanity has chosen to become idiots': This Brown professor switched to take-home exams after a mass shooting and discovered mass cheating
AI
'Humanity has chosen to become idiots': This Brown professor switched to take-home exams after a mass shooting and discovered mass cheating
By Catherina GioinoJune 29, 2026
1 day ago
The U.S. Army is opening military bases to private billions — here's why that changes everything for the next 250 years
Commentary
The U.S. Army is opening military bases to private billions — here's why that changes everything for the next 250 years
By Marc AndersenJune 30, 2026
20 hours ago
The retired college professor fighting a $313 trespassing ticket in Wisconsin thinks he's part of a national struggle
Environment
The retired college professor fighting a $313 trespassing ticket in Wisconsin thinks he's part of a national struggle
By Catherina GioinoJune 28, 2026
3 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.