Military doctor probes 2,544 reported deaths link to COVID-19 vaccine

A U.S. military doctor is investigating whether COVID-19 vaccines may have contributed to the deaths of 2,544 service members whose cases were reported to the federal Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), according to a deposition obtained by Politico.

Dr. Theresa Long, an Army physician and board-certified aerospace medicine specialist, said she was appointed senior medical military adviser to U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and is working with Kennedy and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on the review.

The reported deaths have not been independently verified as vaccine-related.

Long disclosed the investigation in an August 14 deposition connected to a lawsuit filed by former CIA physician Dr. Terry Adirim, who sued the agency after her dismissal. Long said she personally knows of 28 people whom she believes died as a result of COVID-19 vaccination and expects to complete her investigation within a year.

The investigation is being supported by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Defense (DOD).

Long has also questioned data concerning possible increases in medical conditions among military personnel following the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines.

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She cited the Defense Medical Epidemiology Database (DMED), which she said showed substantial increases in some medical conditions in 2021, when COVID-19 vaccines became widely available. The Pentagon attributed previously reported increases in DMED diagnoses to a data-tabulation error, but Long said she remained sceptical of that explanation.

The probe will also examine research into myocarditis and pericarditis, two cardiac conditions that have been associated with mRNA COVID-19 vaccines.

A 2024 U.S. Food and Drug Administration study involving about 300 people who developed myocarditis after receiving Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines found that some, but not all, patients improved over time.

A separate Pentagon report released this year found that myocarditis and pericarditis increased in the short term following vaccination but were not sustained over a one-year period. The report did not assess vaccine-related deaths.

The issue has become particularly contentious because thousands of U.S. service members faced disciplinary action or discharge for refusing COVID-19 vaccination during the pandemic.

According to a December 2022 Pentagon document, 8,123 service members had been discharged by November 30 that year for refusing vaccination. President Donald Trump later signed an executive order in January 2025 directing the reinstatement of personnel discharged for refusing COVID-19 shots.

The Pentagon has since established a COVID-19 Reinstatement and Reconciliation Task Force to assist affected former service members.

However, advocates for discharged personnel argue that many cases remain unresolved. They are calling for expanded reviews of alleged vaccine injuries, medical exemptions and the treatment of personnel who reported adverse events.

The DOD told Politico it had nothing to announce regarding the investigation, while referring to its earlier statement that the department was working to “right the wrongs of the past” and restore confidence in the military.