COVID: 885 UK military personnel have refused vaccine

Eight hundred and eighty-five regular UK Armed Forces personnel have refused to have a COVID-19 vaccination, shown in their electronic medical record, as of 10 December 2021.

They also had no subsequent record of receiving a jab, according to data released by the Ministry of Defence's (MOD) Defence Statistics Health under a Freedom of Information request.

The vaccination is not currently treated as an 'Occupational Vaccine' and does not change an individual's medical deployment standard in relation to their COVID-19 vaccination status.

However, the MOD said it could impact some individuals' eligibility to deploy to certain parts of the world, as some countries require full or partial COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of entry.

This is managed by the Chains of Command.

The MOD added: "Defence policy directs that service personnel should be given the information to make them fully aware of the benefits and risks associated with any vaccination before accepting or declining the offer. This is part of the informed consent process.

"If personnel do have concerns, their healthcare provider will be able to discuss the vaccine with them.

"However, it is strongly recommended that if personnel are offered a COVID-19 vaccine, they should take it to protect themselves and their family."

The MOD statement continued: "Defence policy directs those who are not vaccinated to be managed on a case-by-case basis following a risk assessment.

"The risk assessment and subsequent management of individuals who choose not to be vaccinated against preventable disease is managed by the single service Chain of Command with medical advice."