RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2003-01614
            INDEX CODE:  108.02
            COUNSEL:  DAV

            HEARING DESIRED:  Not Indicated

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

Her disability discharge with severance pay be changed to reflect  that  she
was medically retired.

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APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

The Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) rated her at 30  percent  for  the
same condition she was discharged for.

In support of her request,  applicant  provided  her  DVA  rating  decision,
documentation  associated  with  her  disability  processing,  her  Enlisted
Performance Reports (EPRs) rendered  between  30  Dec  87  and  31  Oct  98,
recognition  and  award   certificates,   Letters   of   Appreciation,   her
decorations and medals, extracts from her medical records,  and  a  copy  of
her DD Form 214.  Her complete submission, with attachments, is  at  Exhibit
A.

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STATEMENT OF FACTS:

Applicant contracted her initial enlistment in the Regular Air Force  on  30
Dec 87.  She was progressively promoted to  the  grade  of  staff  sergeant,
having assumed that grade effective and with a date of rank of 1 Apr 95.

A Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) was convened on 24 Apr 01 and referred  her
case to an Informal Physical Evaluation Board (IPEB)  with  a  diagnosis  of
Celiac Sprue, refractory, with steatorrhea (fat-laden bowel movements).   On
11 May 01, the IPEB found that her medical condition  did  not  prevent  her
from reasonably performing her duties and recommended that she  be  returned
to duty, with cross training.  Additional information was provided  and  the
IPEB reconsidered her case  on  15  Jun  03  and  recommended  that  she  be
discharged with severance pay with a compensable rating of 10  percent.   On
2 Jul 01, the USAF PEB considered the applicant's case and recommended  that
she be discharged with  severance  pay  with  a  compensable  rating  of  10
percent.   The  applicant  agreed  with   the   findings   and   recommended
disposition of the PEB.  She was discharged on 29 Aug  01.   She  served  13
years and 8 months on active duty.

Subsequent to her discharge  from  the  Air  Force,  the  DVA  assigned  the
applicant a rating of 30  percent  for  celiac  spur  with  steatorrhea  and
gastroesphageal reflux disorder,  30  percent  for  migraine  headaches,  10
percent for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and 10 percent for back  strain,
for a combined rating of 60 percent.

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AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

The BCMR Medical  Consultant  recommends  denial.   The  Medical  Consultant
states the applicant was disability  discharged  with  celiac  sprue.   This
condition interfered with her qualifications for flight  duty  but  was  not
otherwise severe enough to prevent  her  from  performing  general  military
duties, participating in extracurricular activities, and attending  college.
 A diagnosis of celiac sprue  can  be  disqualifying  for  military  service
since dietary restrictions place unreasonable requirements on  the  military
to accommodate the member in deployed  environments.   Although  she  had  a
variety of other  medical  conditions,  none  was  unfitting  for  continued
military duty including her history of  gastroesophageal  reflux.   The  PEB
appropriately concluded her celiac sprue was mildly disabling if at all  and
rated her condition at 10% using VASRD code 7323.  In  her  request  for  an
increase in her Air Force  disability  rating,  she  submits  a  DVA  rating
decision as evidence of an Air Force error.   The  DVA  rated  her  combined
gastrointestinal conditions of gastroesphageal reflux together  with  celiac
sprue with a 30% evaluation using VASRD code 7307.  The Air  Force  PEB  did
not find her  gastroesphageal  reflux  disease  unfitting  and  evidence  of
record shows this condition was well controlled with  medication.   Evidence
of record establishes beyond all reasonable  doubt  that  she  was  properly
evaluated and rated and that separation for physical disability with  a  10%
rating was proper.  The Medical Consultant evaluation is at Exhibit C.

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APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

Applicant states her disability was more severe than  the  Air  Force  found
while she was on active duty.   The  DVA  used  evidence  from  her  service
medical records to determine the severity of her disability.  Her  condition
was not rated by the DVA for a condition that deteriorated  after  discharge
but for the severity of the condition while she was still  on  active  duty.
Her condition of celiac sprue was determined to be the same  as  it  was  on
active duty.  Her complete submission is at Exhibit E.

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THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:

1.  The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided  by  existing  law  or
regulations.

2.  The application was timely filed.

3.  Insufficient relevant evidence has been  presented  to  demonstrate  the
existence of error or injustice.  Evidence  has  not  been  presented  which
would lead us to believe that the applicant's disability processing and  the
rating she received at final disposition was contrary to the  governing  Air
Force instruction and the law.   The  applicant  points  to  the  disability
assessments and ratings she received from the DVA to support her claim.   In
this regard, we are constrained to note that by law, the DVA rates  service-
connected conditions on the basis  of  social  and  industrial  adaptability
while the services assign ratings based on  the  degree  of  impairment  for
performance  of  duties.   Therefore,  it  is  entirely  possible  that  the
applicant's unfitting condition was  rated  at  10%  while  she  received  a
higher rating from the DVA.  In  view  of  the  above,  we  agree  with  the
opinion  and  recommendation  of   the   Air   Force   office   of   primary
responsibility and adopt their rationale as the  basis  for  our  conclusion
that the applicant has not  been  the  victim  of  an  error  or  injustice.
Therefore,  in  the  absence  of  evidence  to  the  contrary,  we  find  no
compelling  basis  to  recommend  granting  the  relief   sought   in   this
application.

_________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT:

The applicant be notified that the evidence presented  did  not  demonstrate
the existence of material error  or  injustice;  that  the  application  was
denied without a personal appearance; and that the application will only  be
reconsidered upon the submission of newly discovered relevant  evidence  not
considered with this application.

_________________________________________________________________

The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number  BC-2003-
01614 in Executive Session on 19 Feb 04, under the  provisions  of  AFI  36-
2603:

      Mr. Vaughn E. Schlunz, Panel Chair
      Mr. James W. Russell III, Member
      Ms. Jean A. Reynolds, Member

The following documentary evidence was considered:

    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 15 May 03, w/atchs.
    Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
    Exhibit C.  Letter, BCMR Medical Consultant, dated 19 Dec 03.
    Exhibit D.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 23 Dec 03.
    Exhibit E.  Letter, Applicant, dated 26 Jan 04.




                                   VAUGHN E. SCHLUNZ
                                   Panel Chair