Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley says the memo circulating about COVID-19 as a permanent disqualifier for military service was just a "draft."
The memo -- which was originally posted to Twitter Monday afternoon and spread quickly -- in so many words said that any history of COVID-19 would result in a permanent disqualification from military service.
"During the medical history interview or examination, a history of COVID-19, confirmed by either a laboratory test or clinician diagnosis, is permanently disqualifying," the memo reads.
For obvious reasons, the memo raised concerns.
Any history of COVID-19 will require a medical waiver for military service
Disqualifying those with a history of COVID-19 could significantly reduce the pool of individuals eligible for military service. A mid-April report showed that America has a "test-positivity rate" of 20 percent -- meaning one in five Americans tested for COVID-19 tests positive.
But Milley says the memo was just a draft.
"It's an early version. It is not decided by the secretary of defense, nor any service secretary," Milley told NPR.
The chairman said that some of the language in the memo -- like "permanently barring, personally disqualifying" -- didn't even really make sense.
That being said, senior Department of Defense officials have confirmed that some sort of restrictions on those with a history of COVID-19 will likely be put in place -- as long as the long-term effects of the virus are such a mystery. While a positive COVID-19 diagnosis will not automatically result in disqualification, those who were hospitalized for the virus will be barred from service and have additional hoops to jump.
The various entry-level basic training operations led by each branch -- a.k.a. the first stop for new recruits who have cleared those hoops -- have been particularly hard hit by the virus. One of the Army's largest virus outbreaks was centered around its basic training headquarters in Fort Jackson, South Carolina. The Marine Corps saw more than two dozen of its recruits test positive at its training depot in San Diego.
COVID-19 hits Marine boot camp hard
And all this despite various screening, prevention, and pause measures implemented in response to the growing pandemic. In more than one case, recruits have successfully cleared a three-level health screening procedure just to later test positive once they have spent weeks training in open bay barracks among hundreds of other recruits.
COVID-19 prevention efforts at basic trainings are failing
That being said, the Department of Defense continues to hold up more strongly against the virus than the general population. This appears to be especially true for the active-duty component.
As of May 1, the general United States population reported a recovery rate of 12.25 percent among its 1.11 million confirmed COVID-19 cases. As for deaths, 5.88 percent of those diagnosed with COVID-19 died from it. Rates within the Department of Defense are significantly different.
Across all of DoD, about a third of those diagnosed with COVID-19 have recovered. And one-third of one percent or .3 percent have died. Within the active-duty component, the fatality rate is far lower at .04 percent.
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