RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 26 July 2005
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20050002731
I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record
of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in
the case of the above-named individual.
| |Mr. Carl W. S. Chun | |Director |
| |Mr. Edmund P. Mercanti | |Analyst |
The following members, a quorum, were present:
| |Ms. Linda D. Simmons | |Chairperson |
| |Mr. Patrick H. McGann Jr. | |Member |
| |Mr. Leonard G. Hassell | |Member |
The Board considered the following evidence:
Exhibit A - Application for correction of military records.
Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including advisory opinion,
if any).
THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:
1. In effect, the applicant requests that his Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA) rated disability for tinnitus be approved for Combat-Related
Special Compensation (CRSC).
2. The applicant states that while he was in Vietnam, he frequently went
with a transportation company to carry supplies to the front line. He
believes that the noise from artillery caused his tinnitus.
3. The applicant provides the denial of both his CRSC application and his
separation document.
CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:
1. CRSC, as established by Section 1413a, Title 10, United States Code, as
amended, states that eligible members are those retirees who have 20 years
of service for retired pay computation (or 20 years of service creditable
for reserve retirement at age 60) and who have disabilities that are the
direct result of armed conflict, specially hazardous military duty,
training exercises that simulate war, or caused by an instrumentality of
war. Such disabilities must be compensated by the VA and rated at least
10% disabling. For periods before 1 January 2004 (the date this statute
was amended), members had to have disabilities for which they have been
awarded the Purple Heart and are rated at least 10% disabled or who are
rated at least 60% disabled as a direct result of armed conflict, specially
hazardous duty, training exercises that simulate war, or caused by an
instrumentality of war. CRSC benefits are equal to the amount of VA
disability compensation offset from retired pay based on those disabilities
determined to be combat-related.
2. On 24 January 2005, the U.S. Army Physical Disability Agency (USAPDA)
Combat Related Special Compensation (CRSC) Branch determined that the
applicant’s tinnitus was not combat related and denied his request for
reconsideration of the denial of his application for CRSC.
3. In the processing of similar cases, advisory opinions were obtained
from the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (OUSD), Military
Personnel Policy. The
OUSD has maintained in these opinions that in order for a condition to be
considered combat related, there must be evidence of the condition having a
direct, causal relationship to war or the simulation of war.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. CRSC was passed into law as a legislative initiative to eliminate the
prohibition of military retirees from receiving VA disability benefits.
Due to cost constraints, only those military retirees who have disabilities
incurred in combat, or in conditions simulating combat (which includes
hazardous duties), are eligible for CRSC.
2. As stated above, the CRSC criteria is specifically for those military
retirees who have combat related disabilities. Incurring disabilities
while in a theater of operations is not, in and of itself, sufficient to
grant a military retiree CRSC. The military retiree must show that the
disability was incurred while engaged in combat, while performing duties
simulating combat conditions, or while performing specially hazardous
duties such as parachuting or scuba diving.
3. The OUSD advisory opinions indicate that CRSC is generally intended for
military retirees who can show that their disabilities were caused by a
specific incident which has been made a matter of record. In the
applicant’s case, there is no evidence or indication that any specific
event caused his tinnitus. Without evidence of a specific event which
caused the applicant’s tinnitus, there is no basis for approving this
condition for CRSC.
BOARD VOTE:
________ ________ ________ GRANT FULL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
___lds __ ___jgh___ ____phm_ DENY APPLICATION
BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:
The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable
error or injustice. Therefore, the Board determined that the overall
merits of this case are insufficient as a basis for correction of the
records of the individual concerned.
_____Linda D. Simmons______
CHAIRPERSON
INDEX
|CASE ID |AR20050002731 |
|SUFFIX | |
|RECON |YYYYMMDD |
|DATE BOARDED |20050726 |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE |(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR) |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE |YYYYMMDD |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY |AR . . . . . |
|DISCHARGE REASON | |
|BOARD DECISION |DENY |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY | |
|ISSUES 1. | |
|2. | |
|3. | |
|4. | |
|5. | |
|6. | |
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