Senate passes $858B defense spending bill, cuts COVID vaccine requirement for troops

The Senate passed an $858 billion defense spending bill on Thursday that would end the Defense Department’s mandate for troops to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

The Biden administration had opposed efforts to include the vaccine mandate repeal in the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act, but Republican negotiators were successfully able to include language nixing the 2021 directive by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in the bill’s final language.

The 2023  NDAA passed the Senate by an overwhelmingly bipartisan margin in an 83-11 vote. It now heads to President Biden’s desk for...