By Steve Neavling
An increasing number of Border Patrol agents and TSA employees are getting vaccinated in compliance with President Biden’s executive order, according to updated data.
As of Nov. 30, 96% of Homeland Security employees were in compliance.
About 88% of employees are fully vaccinated, and 89% have received at least one dose. About 7% have “reasonable accommodation requests” and don’t have to get vaccinated, according to the data.
“The health and safety of our workforce – and the American people that we serve – is of the utmost importance,” Homeland Security Deputy Secretary John Tien said in a statement. “Importantly, we have achieved this level of compliance without any interruption to the critical missions and services we provide the American people: from border and aviation security, to maritime search and rescue, to cybersecurity and the protection of critical infrastructure, just to name a few. I am so grateful to our dedicated workforce, who have stepped up and done their part to get us there.”
About 98% of CBP employees are in compliance, and 87% are vaccinated. An additional 11% are exempt.
In the TSA, 93% are in compliance, with 86% vaccinated and 7% exempt.
In November, some Republican lawmakers were calling for Border Patrol agents to be exempt from the executive order, saying national security is at stake. At the time, about 77% of agents were fully vaccinated.
