WASHINGTON — The Department of Veterans Affairs today announced that potentially thousands of Veterans who were discharged from service by the Biden Administration for refusing the COVID vaccine may regain eligibility for GI Bill education benefits.
In January, President Trump issued Executive Order 14184, Reinstating Service Members Discharged Under the Military’s COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate. Following that, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth directed the military departments to facilitate, among other things, discharge upgrades for individuals involuntarily separated solely for refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine and whose service was characterized as less than fully honorable.
The Biden Administration separated more than 8,000 service members from the military because they had refused to comply with the Department of Defense (now Department of War) COVID vaccine mandate. More than half of these warriors received a discharge that was characterized as less than fully honorable, which may have made them ineligible for GI Bill education benefits.
Following Department of War reviews, 899 of these Veterans are now eligible for GI Bill education benefits, and thousands more could also regain GI Bill eligibility thanks to the executive order.
In September, VA sent letters to Veterans who have already received upgraded discharges to inform them of their potential eligibility for GI Bill education benefits. VA encourages all Veterans who were discharged from service for refusing the COVID vaccine to seek an upgraded status and apply for GI Bill benefits.
“The Biden Administration’s authoritarian COVID mandates upended the lives and livelihoods of thousands of service members and Veterans,” said VA Secretary Doug Collins. “We are proud to help implement President Trump’s executive order and make these Veterans whole again.”
“One of the most atrocious attacks on our military by the previous administration was the discharging and targeting of perfectly healthy warfighters who refused to take an experimental vaccine implemented by an illegal mandate. We must never let that happen again, and we must also right the wrongs of the past in order to restore trust. We at the Department of War and the VA are grateful for President Trump’s Executive Order reinstating GI Bill benefits for those veterans who were targeted for refusing the illegal COVID-19 vaccine mandate.” — Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.
What Veterans should know:
Veterans who believe they were discharged inappropriately or believe their military personnel records still reflect an error or injustice (for example, separation under the COVID-19 mandate) may request review from a Discharge Review Board or Board for Correction of Military or Naval Records. For more information, visit the Military Department Review Boards website at https://www.milreviewbds.mil/.
Once Veterans receive official notification that their discharge status has been upgraded to fully honorable, they can submit a new education benefits claim to VA.
For more information on VA education benefits, visit www.va.gov/education or call 888-GIBILL-1.
