• Please contact your individual leadership, or 436th Airlift Wing Public Affairs via email at 436aw.pa@us.af.mil or phone at (302) 677-3372. We also encourage you to follow the Dover Air Force Base Facebook page at www.facebook.com/DoverAirForceBase for additional updates.
• For COVID-19 specific questions, please contact Public Health at 302-677-2564.

• Dover Air Force Base is currently in Health Protection Condition (HPCON) Alpha. 

• As of 2 March 2022, personnel are no longer required to wear a mask on Dover AFB. As of 4 April 2023, personnel are no longer required to wear a mask when visiting the 436th Medical Group facilities unless they:

  • Decided it is required per individual risk.
  • Have a respiratory infection.
  • Were in close contact with someone who was a confirmed COVID-19 positive within 10 days of exposure.
  • Have had source control recommended by Public Health.

• Dover AFB’s face covering policy applies to all total force military personnel, Department of Defense civilian employees, to include non-appropriated funded civilians, family members, DOD contractors and all other individuals on the installation.

• While it is encouraged for all, physically distancing while wearing a mask is not required. Mask wear and social distancing should be practiced in combination with other everyday preventive actions to reduce the spread of COVID-19, including avoiding touching your face with unwashed hands, and frequently washing your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

What facilities are available on Dover AFB?

• The actions Team Dover continues to take for the safety of our fellow Airmen and the Dover community have allowed us to re-open facilities and begin transitioning to a new state of normalcy. Visit the FSS website for more info.

  • What is Dover AFB’s current policy for teleworking?
    • Dover AFB personnel deemed at risk are authorized to telework in coordination with their unit commander. If telework is deemed unsuitable, unit commanders are authorized to make other accommodations to ensure personnel safety.
  • What is the base’s current policy for indoor and outdoor gatherings?
    • ​Indoor gatherings are limited to 250 or less. Workplace occupancy is limited to less than 100%. In accordance with DoD and Air Force guidance, unit commanders (or functional equivalents) are authorized to allow up to 100% workplace occupancy. Base members must also comply with the latest Delaware guidance for residential/private indoor gatherings, which can be found at https://coronavirus.delaware.gov/restrictions/.
  • What is the local leave area currently?
    • For approval of leave or pass (liberty), all personnel will follow their respective organizations’ most current policies, in addition to relevant DoD or service-specific guidance. For Air Force members, department guidelines have returned to pre-COVID procedures. Liberty will be approved in accordance with Air Force Instruction 36-3003. Individual unit commanders should follow guidelines in AFI 36-3003, paragraph 4.4 for regular and special passes. Dover AFB personnel must continue to minimize the risk of exposure to COVID-19 while on leave.
  • If I feel sick or have COVID-19 symptoms, what should I do?
    • Stay home, notify your chain of command, and call the appointment line at 302-730-4633.

• The COVID-19 vaccine primary series was mandated in 2021 with completion required by November 2, 2021, for Active-Duty personnel. This mandate includes any authorized vaccine including: 2 shots of an mRNA vaccine (Moderna or Pfizer), 2 shots of a protein subunit vaccine (Novavax), or 1 shot of Johnson & Johnson.
• If you still have questions about the vaccine, medical professionals are standing by to help answer any of your concerns. 
• Members may call 302-730-4633 to make an appointment.  Members can also receive vaccines off-base.
• Vaccination non-compliance:
  • Any refusal to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, absent an approved exemption or accommodation, may be punishable under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). Military commanders retain the full range of disciplinary options available to them under the UCMJ.​​​​

• No. Active-Duty Service Commitment waivers will not be automatically granted; however, Airmen and Guardians may, in accordance with AFI 36-3203, Service Retirements, paragraph 3.8. and AFI 36-3207, Separating Commissioned Officers, paragraph 2.12.1., request an Active-Duty Service Commitment waiver in conjunction with their retirement or separation application.

• Yes, unless you have a separate approved or temporary exemption, pursuant to the 24 August 2021 Secretary of Defense memorandum, the subsequent 3 September 2021 Secretary of the Air Force memorandum, and subsequent DAF implementation guidance.

• Commanders and directors may permit service members who are not fully vaccinated access to the installation and the workplace in accordance with the screening and testing requirements of OSD Force Health Protection (FHP) Guidance 23 (and subsequent revisions), and applicable DAF policies.

• If you are eligible to get the vaccine off base, please do so. Afterward, please bring a copy of your vaccination form to the Immunizations clinic for record.
• Please visit vaccines.gov to find a location nearest you!

• At this time, the 436th Medical Group carries Moderna products only. This includes the Moderna product down to 6 months of life and includes the updated booster vaccine.

• You should not get the vaccine if you have any of the following:
  • History of severe allergic reaction after a previous dose or to a component of the COVID-19 vaccine.
  • History of a known diagnosed allergy to a component of the COVID-19 vaccine.
  • People with a known allergy to polysorbate are unable to receive both the Novavax and Janssen vaccines
• You should talk to your healthcare provider prior to getting vaccinated for any of the following:
  • History of anaphylaxis after any other injectable therapy
  • Have a history of a non-severe, immediate allergic reaction after a dose of 1 type of COVID vaccine
  • Moderate or severe acute illness with/without a fever
  • History of MIS-C or MIS-A
  • History of myocarditis or pericarditis after a dose of an mRNA or Novavax vaccine

• Vaccine products are approved for all healthy individuals down to 6months of age.

• The vaccine is administered intramuscularly (upper arm or thigh depending on your age).

• Adverse reactions are similar to other immunizations and may include swelling, pain, redness, and tenderness at the injection site. General side effects include fatigue, headache, muscle pain, joint pain, fever, chills, lymph node swelling, nausea and vomiting are possible and are more likely to occur after the second dose of the immunization. These side effects are expected as a normal response and a sign that your body is creating antibodies to protect you from COVID-19. Additional adverse reactions may become apparent with more widespread distribution of the vaccines. For more information on possible side effects, visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/expect/after.html.
• We encourage you to register for the V-Safe health checker program, a smartphone-based tool that uses text messaging and web surveys to provide personalized health check-ins from the CDC to vaccine recipients. Depending on your answers, someone from the CDC may call to check on you, but please still contact your primary care team for any additional concerns. For more information, visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/safety/vsafe.html

• If your symptoms are severe, concerning, could be confused for COVID-19 infection (fever, cough) or limit your ability to perform your duties, then you should stay home and seek appropriate medical care.
• Symptoms would be expected to resolve within 48 hours. For persistent symptoms, please contact your primary care manager team at 302-730-4633.

• The second dose should be administered as close to the recommended interval as possible but should be 3-8 weeks after the first for Pfizer/Novavax or 4-8 weeks after the first for Moderna.

• According to the CDC, people are considered fully vaccinated two weeks after their second shot in a two-dose vaccine series (Moderna/Pfizer/Novavax vaccines) or two weeks after a single-dose vaccine (such as Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine).  
• ​For more information, visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/index.html​​

• mRNA technology was discovered over 30 years ago and has been studied for vaccine purposes for nearly two decades. Scientists have been working on a coronavirus vaccine since the SARS and MERS outbreaks in 2002 with vaccine trials published by 2008.
• The mRNA provides the “instructions” to the body’s cells to build and display a specific protein, normally found on the surface of SARS-CoV2 (the virus that transmits COVID). Our immune system recognizes this protein as foreign to your body and begins making antibodies. After developing these antibodies, our immune system has learned how to mount a defense more quickly and effectively against future infection.
• mRNA vaccines cannot give someone COVID-19 or alter your DNA
• For more information on how COVID-19 vaccines work, visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/different-vaccines/how-they-work.html.