‘Deploy or get out’: 21K gone

WASHINGTON – About 21,000 non-deployable military personnel have been forced out of the services since the Defense Department’s “deploy or get out” policy began in the summer of 2018, Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee during a March 14 FY 2020 budget request hearing. “A key element of strengthening our military … is ensuring our war-fighters achieve established physical, mental and security vetting standards,” he said. “War is unforgiving, and our mission demands (that) we remain a standards-based organization.” Pentagon officials estimated last summer that about 11 percent of active-duty troops (235,000) were rated non-deployable. Almost half had missing medical exam paperwork, troops nearing retirement, and women who were pregnant. The rest (126,000) faced a range of short- and long-term injuries or failed military fitness standards. Military officials said those individuals would be given up to 12 months to prove deployability or pushed out. Pregnant, recently pregnant, and combat-wounded troops are exempt from the standards. DoD set a not-more-than-5 percent goal for each service to be classified non-deployable. Within a few months, the percentage of non-deployable troops had dropped to around 5.4 percent, he said. “(W)e are making meaningful progress.” (Source: (Military Times 03/14/19)