Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and Chief Medical Advisor to the White House, said on Friday that U.S. military personnel who choose not to receive the coronavirus vaccine are inadvertently “part of the problem” hamper efforts to end the pandemic.
“You are part of the solution to this outbreak,” said Fauci at the prefecture of Blue Star Families, a non-profit organization that assists US military families, according to CNBC.
“Because when you get infected, even if you don’t know it, you can inadvertently pass the infection on to someone else, even without symptoms,” continued the officer. “In fact, like it or not, you are spreading this outbreak. So, instead of being part of the solution, you are innocently and inadvertently being part of the problem by not being vaccinated. “
“You need to think about your own health, which is really very important, but you need to think about your social obligation, including people close to you personally, as well as other members of other people’s family,” he added.
Approximately one-third of members of the U.S. military have chosen not to take the coronavirus, according to the Department of Defense.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said there was no detailed military data on the vaccines, but said more than 916,500 have been administered so far.
Kirby said the level of refusal is at the same level as the general population, where the vaccine has not been offered as widely.
“We, the military, basically reflect the acceptance rates of American society,” Kirby told reporters.
Agence France-Presse contributed to this report.