RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS
IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2014-00804
COUNSEL: NONE
HEARING DESIRED: NO
APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:
His records be corrected to show he was retired for disability
rather than discharged.
APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:
He should have been awarded a disability rating to qualify for
retirement instead of being discharged. His medical conditions
were caused/aggravated by his military service. He had no
issues for over 14 years until pre-deployment vaccinations were
administered while attending basic military training and several
training/pre-deployment exercises. This is evidenced by the
fact that the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) has resolved
doubt in his favor and issued him a disability rating for these
conditions.
The applicants complete submission, with attachments, is at
Exhibit A.
STATEMENT OF FACTS:
The applicant initially entered the Regular Air Force on
21 Nov 06 and served on active duty until 28 Dec 12, when he was
discharged for Disability that Existed Prior to Service (EPTS).
He was credited with six years, one month, and eight days of
total active service.
According to the documentation submitted by the applicant, on
28 Mar 13, the DVA issued him the following service connected
disability ratings:
a. Seizure disorder 40 percent.
b. Intermittent right tinnitus 10 percent
c. Retention cysts, left maxillary sinus 10 percent.
The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are
contained in the memorandums prepared by the Air Force offices
of primary responsibility, which are attached at Exhibits C
and D.
AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
AFPC/DPFD recommends denial indicating there is no evidence of
an error or an injustice. Under Title 10, United States Code,
Physical Evaluation Boards must determine if a members
condition renders them unfit for continued military service
relating to their office, grade, rank, or rating. The fact that
a person may have a medical condition does not mean that the
condition is necessarily unfitting for continued military
service. Further, it must be noted the USAF disability boards
must rate disabilities based on the members condition at the
time of evaluation; in essence a snapshot of their condition at
the time. Under Title 38, the DVA may rate any service-
connected condition based upon future employability or
reevaluate based on changes in the severity of a condition. The
applicant submitted documents from the DVA that they reversed
their decision on the seizures being EPTS. However, from the
applicants medical board narrative, it was noted that his
seizures began when he was 17 years of age.
A complete copy of the AFPC/DPFD evaluation is at Exhibit C.
BCMR Medical Consultant recommends denial of the applicants
petition to change his status from Discharged to retired for
medical reasons, indicating there is no evidence of an error or
an injustice. The applicants clinical history reflects that he
experienced seizures before entering military service; and that
the seizure(s) he experienced after entering military service
were similar to what happened when he was a teenager. Absent
a de novo cause of the applicants seizures since entering
military service, e.g., head trauma, neoplastic disease, stroke,
residuals of an post-inflammatory process, or other
scientifically proven service-related cause, the Medical
Consultant concurs with the conclusions reached by the Military
Department Medical Evaluation Board and the Informal Physical
Evaluation Board. The fact that the applicant did not disclose
a history of seizures at the time he completed his enlistment
health documents, which he has disclosed years later, borders on
fraudulent service entry; and, as a minimum, would require a
waiver to enter military service, in which case the government
would not have been obligated to process as a compensable
disorder once it precluded retention.
A complete copy of the BCMR Medical Consultants evaluation is
at Exhibit D.
APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
Copies of the Air Force evaluations were forwarded to the
applicant on 27 Oct 14 for review and comment within 30 days
(Exhibit E). As of this date, no response has been received by
this office.
THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:
1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by
existing law or regulations.
2. The application was not timely filed; however, it is in the
interest of justice to excuse the failure to timely file.
3. Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to
demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice. We took
notice of the applicant's complete submission in judging the
merits of the case; however, we agree with the opinions and
recommendations of the Air Force office of primary
responsibility (OPR) and the BCMR Medical Consultant and adopt
their rationale as the basis for our conclusion the applicant
has not been the victim of an error or injustice. Therefore, in
the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find no basis to
recommend granting the relief sought in this application.
THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT:
The applicant be notified the evidence presented did not
demonstrate the existence of material error or injustice; the
application was denied without a personal appearance; and 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-2014-00804 in Executive Session on 18 Dec 14, under
the provisions of AFI 36-2603:
The following documentary evidence pertaining to AFBCMR Docket
Number BC-2014-00804 was considered:
Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 28 Mar 13, w/atchs.
Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
Exhibit C. Memorandum, AFPC/DPFD, dated 13 Mar 14.
Exhibit D. Memorandum, AFBCMR, Medical Consultant, dated
25 Sep 14.
Exhibit E. Letter SAF/MRBR, dated 27 Oct 14.
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