Blog | Announcement | February 22, 2018

POLITICO Spotlights Mission: Readiness’ Concern About 71% of Young Americans Ineligible for Military Service

Article part of recent national media coverage of this issue and Mission: Readiness’ work

On February 19, 2018, POLITICO highlighted the work that Mission: Readiness is doing to address the fact that 71 percent of young adults ages 17 to 24 are ineligible for military service, primarily because they are too poorly educated, too overweight, or have a disqualifying record of crime or drug abuse.

Norm Seip, a retired Air Force Lieutenant General and Chairman of Council for a Strong America, stated in the article, “The problem needs a team effort — at the federal level, the local level, parents, teachers, kids.”

“We can’t sweep it under the rug,” Seip added. “If you look at the new national security strategy, we are in a competition with other powers.”

Mission: Readiness continues to advocate at the state and federal levels for t smart investments proven to help address the primary disqualifiers for military service, such as high-quality early care and education programs, rigorous K-12 education standards, healthy school meals, and physical education.

The POLITICO article is part of recent national media coverage of this issue and Mission: Readiness’ work:

Newsmax: Study: About 75 Percent of Young Americans Ineligible for Military. February 21, 2018.

POLITICO: Fat, unhealthy Americans threaten Trump’s defense surge. February 19, 2018.

Nexstar Media Group: Too few good recruits? Military struggling to fill its ranks. Mission Readiness says more than 70 percent of young adults are not eligible to serve in the military. February 14, 2018.

Military Officer Magazine (cover story): How the Military Recruits When 70% of Americans Can’t Serve. February 5, 2018.

You can also view recently updated state-by-state military eligibility rates compiled by Mission: Readiness.

States

  1. National