# Plain Language Summary of the TROOP Act

This bill would require the military to rehire service members who were discharged solely because they refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine. If someone was kicked out of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, or Coast Guard specifically for declining the vaccine, they could request to be brought back. The military would have to reinstate them at the same rank and grade they held when they were discharged, meaning they'd return to their previous position level without any penalty to their military standing.

Beyond just getting their job back, these reinstated service members would receive back pay for all the time they were separated from the military. This means they'd get paid for the entire period between when they were discharged and when they're brought back on active duty. Additionally, any time they spent away from the military would count toward their retirement benefits and pension calculations, so they wouldn't lose credit for those years of service.

The bill is specifically limited to people who were discharged for one reason and one reason only: refusing the COVID-19 vaccine. It wouldn't apply to people who were discharged for other reasons, even if vaccine refusal was part of a larger disciplinary issue. The military leadership (the Secretary of each branch) would handle the reinstatement process when someone makes a formal request to return.

TROOP Act

Dunn, Neal P.

Troop Return Of Overdue Payment Act or the TROOP Act This bill requires the military departments to reinstate individuals who were involuntarily separated from an Armed Force solely on the basis of refusing to receive a COVID-19 vaccination (i.e., covered individuals). Specifically, upon the request of a covered individual, the military department concerned must (1) reinstate the covered individual in the same rank and grade the individual held at the time of separation, and (2) include the period between the involuntary separation and the reinstatement in the computation of the retired or retainer pay of the covered individual. Additionally, a covered individual who requests reinstatement must be entitled to back pay for the period between the involuntary separation and reinstatement.