RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 28 June 2007
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20060011895
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 reconsideration of the Boards denial of his request to approve all of his Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disabilities for Combat Related Special Compensation (CRSC).
2. The applicant states that he was assigned to a cavalry unit in an infantry division assigned duties as a scout section leader. His job was to search and destroy the enemy. He was in good health before going to Vietnam, but after 4 months he was diagnosed with heart disease and hypertension because of extreme stress.
3. The applicant provides a DA Form 3349, Medical Condition Physical Profile Record dated 23 January 1970. He also submits a Standard Form 502, Narrative Summary dated 17 January 1973 which shows that the applicant, a staff sergeant who was serving as a personnel specialist, was determined medically disqualified for coronary artery disease. It also shows that the applicant was medically evacuated from Vietnam for back pain that he had suffered from most of his adult life.
CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:
1. Incorporated herein by reference are military records which were summarized in the previous consideration of the applicant's case by the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) in Docket Number AR20050011437, on 9 February 2006.
2. Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a narrowing of the small blood vessels that supply blood and oxygen to the heart. Coronary heart disease is usually caused by a condition called atherosclerosis, which occurs when fatty material and a substance called plaque builds up on the walls of your arteries. This causes them to get narrow. As the coronary arteries narrow, blood flow to the heart can slow down or stop, causing chest pain (stable angina), shortness of breath, heart attack, and other symptoms.
3. Hypertension means high blood pressure. Blood pressure readings are measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg) and usually given as 2 numbers. For example, 140 over 90 (written as 140/90). The top number is your systolic pressure, the pressure created when your heart beats. It is considered high if it is consistently over 140. The bottom number is your diastolic pressure, the pressure inside blood vessels when the heart is at rest. It is considered high if it is consistently over 90. Either or both of these numbers may be too high. Pre-hypertension is when your systolic blood pressure is between 120 and 139 or your diastolic blood pressure is between 80 and 89 on multiple readings. If you have pre-hypertension, you are more likely to develop high blood pressure at some point. Blood pressure measurements are the result of the force of the blood produced by the heart and the size and condition of the arteries. Many factors can affect blood pressure, including how much water and salt you have in your body, the condition of your kidneys, nervous system, or blood vessels, and the levels of different body hormones. High blood pressure can affect all types of people. You have a higher risk of high blood pressure if you have a family history of the disease. (MEDLINE PLUS)
4. 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 contends that the stress of being assigned to Vietnam as a scout section leader in a cavalry troop in an infantry unit caused his coronary artery disease and hypertension. 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 evidence of medical treatment for an injury or other official documentation. The fact that the applicant was treated for coronary artery disease and hypertension following his assignment to Vietnam does not fulfill this requirement.
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 to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20050011437, on 9 February 2006.
_________John T. Meixell_______
CHAIRPERSON
INDEX
CASE ID
AR20060011895
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.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
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