i got vaccinated :: Article Creator The Fallout Of The Military's COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate The new year brought a major victory for thousands of service members who refused the COVID-19 vaccines – and the conservative lawmakers and pundits who backed them. The Pentagon was forced to repeal its coronavirus mandate by a largely-GOP-backed requirement added to the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act, signed into law by President Joe Biden in December. But many troops who balked at taking the shots still face uncertain futures. The controversy shows how healthcare became a political football, with both the far right and some on the left objecting to mandated COVID vaccinations, mask-wearing, and other government public health responses. It also revealed how COVID disinformation spread and caught fire, stoking deepening mistrust of government among wide segments of American society. More than 17,000 service members balked at taking the shots,...