RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 28 June 2007
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20060010334
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.
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. The applicant requests, in effect, that his Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) rated disability for hearing loss be approved for Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC).
2. The applicant asks that the fact that his hearing loss occurred while he was on flight status be taken into consideration.
3. The applicant provides the denial of his request to reconsider his CRSC application, his separation documents, medical records, and excerpts from his military flight records.
CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:
1. Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC), as established by Section 1413a, Title 10, United States Code, as amended, provides for the payment of the amount of money a military retiree would receive from the VA for combat related disabilities if it wasnt for the statutory prohibition for a military retiree to receive a VA disability pension. Payment is made by the Military Department, not the VA, and is tax free. 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. Military retirees who are approved for CRSC must have waived a portion of their military retired pay since CRSC consists of the Military Department returning a portion of the waived retired pay to the military retiree.
2. On 10 February 2005, the U.S. Army Physical Disability Agency (USAPDA) CRSC Branch denied the applicants request 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. The CRSC criteria is specifically for those military retirees who have combat related disabilities. Incurring disabilities while in a theater of operations or in training exercises 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.
2. The applicant has not stated, and there is no evidence which shows, that his VA rated disability is combat related for CRSC purposes. He appears to be requesting CRSC based on the cumulative wear and tear of performing duties as a pilot. In this regard, as stated above, a military retiree must establish a direct, causal relationship to the requested VA rated disabilities to war or the simulation of war to qualify for CRSC. In other words, to qualify for CRSC an applicant must provide documentation which clearly demonstrates that his or her disability was incurred as a result of combat action, training exercises, or exceptionally hazardous duties. This normally requires medical treatment records showing that a Soldier had a trauma. Absent such record, any number of things could have caused the disability.
BOARD VOTE:
________ ________ ________ GRANT FULL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
___jtm___ ____dac_ ___wfc__ 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.
_________John T. Meixell________
CHAIRPERSON
INDEX
CASE ID
AR20060010334
SUFFIX
RECON
YYYYMMDD
DATE BOARDED
20070628
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.
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