From [CHD] Nearly 50 Republican lawmakers, led by Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.), have called on the U.S. Department of Defense to withdraw its COVID-19 vaccine mandate for military members, citing concerns over the mandate’s impact on the readiness of the U.S. armed forces.

In a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin dated Sept. 15, the lawmakers, including Reps. Chip Roy (R-Texas) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), expressed their “grave concerns” over the impact of the mandate, particularly with regard to the U.S. Army.

“As a result of your mandate, 8% of the Army’s approximately 1 million soldiers face expulsion, Army recruiters cannot meet their FY22 target and the Army has cut its projected FY23 end strength by 12,000 soldiers,” they wrote.

Referring to Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, the lawmakers noted that the U.S. military currently faces “a self-imposed readiness crisis.”

Citing “sparse” data from the Department of the Army, they noted that “at least 40,000 National Guardsmen, 20,000 Army Reservists and at least 15,000 Active Army Soldiers” haven’t yet received a COVID-19 vaccine and subsequently face being discharged from service.

“The Department of Defense’s own COVID response page indicates that approximately 900,000 soldiers are fully vaccinated out of the 1 million soldiers in the Army, Army Reserve and Army National Guard,” the letter reads.

The lawmakers pointed to testimony delivered in July by Vice Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Joseph Martin before the House Armed Services Committee.

During that testimony, Martin said that “less than 20,000” people were facing discharge for refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine, much less than the initial figures that officials had provided.