IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	        25 NOVEMBER 2008

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20080010183 


THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE:

1.  Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any).

2.  Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any).


THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests:

	a.  Correction of her records to show she was granted an additional 6 months of constructive service credit (CSC) for continued appointment in the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) Reserve Corps prior to direct commission into the U.S Army Medical Corps (MC); 

	b.  Correction of the date of rank (DOR) of her entry rank of captain, as a result of additional CSC, to show a date closer to 27 July 1982 rather than 26 January 1983; and

	c.  Adjustment of her follow-on DORs for major, lieutenant colonel, and colonel.

2.  The applicant states she believes she was not granted full credit for the time she maintained a Reserve commission with the USPHS and served on several temporary duty assignments.  After four years of active service with the USPHS from 1983 to 1987, she spent one year in a Reserve status until she entered the Army.  She also adds that this may not have been fully apparent at the original application, but was known by the recruiting office that helped process her paperwork at the time.  She also recalls receiving a specific request to obtain a termination order for the USPHS commission to be dated the day prior to executing a U.S. Army commission.  She also adds that she recently learned from another officer that she should have been entitled to 12 months instead of 6 months of additional CSC for the full year of service she maintained her USPHS Reserve commission prior to entering active duty.  

3.  The applicant provides the following additional documentary evidence in support of her application:

	a.  Officer Record Brief (ORB), dated 15 May 2008.

	b.  Undated self-authored Chronology of Service Events.

	c.  Undated Internet printout showing the calculation of constructive service credit promotion eligibility date.

	d.  Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Public Health Service, Rockville, Maryland (MD), Personnel Order Number 8263.001, dated 19 September 1988.

	e. U.S. Public Health Service, Department of HHS, Statement of Service, dated 11 August 1987.

	f.  DA Form 5074-R (Record of Award of Entry Grade Credit (Medical and Dental Officers)), dated 29 June 1988.

	g.  U.S. Total Army Personnel Agency (Provisional), St. Louis, Missouri (MO), Memorandum, dated 20 August 1988, Appointment as a Reserve Commissioned Officer of the Army.

	h.  DA Form 71 (Oath of Office), dated 6 September 1988.

	i.  Memorandum, dated 14 June 1989, USTAPC (now known as the Human Resources Command or HRC), Alexandria, Virginia (VA), Subject: Determination of Active Duty Date of Rank (ADOR).

	j.  Memorandum, dated 8 March 1990, USTAPC, Alexandria, VA, Subject: Consideration for Promotion.

	k.  Memorandum, dated 12 April 1990, USTAPC, Subject: Promotion Status.

	l.  Miscellaneous emails, dated on various dates, between the applicant and several officials of HRC-Alexandria, VA; U.S. Army Recruiting Command (USAREC), Fort Knox, Kentucky; and others.

	m.  Department of HHS, Personnel Order Number 8144.035, dated 23 May 1988, Call to Active Duty from Inactive.

	n.  Department of HHS, Personnel Order Number 8221.031, dated 8 August 1988, Call to Active Duty from Inactive.

	o.  Department of HHS, Personnel Order Number 7175.082, dated 24 June 1987, Separation Orders.

	p.  Department of HHS, Personnel Order Number 8263.001, dated
19 September 1988, Appointment Termination.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant's records show she executed a USPHS scholarship contract and subsequently entered Tulane School of Medicine, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana (LA), from August 1978 to June 1982, and was granted a Medical Doctor (MD) degree on 5 June 1982.  She subsequently completed her Internship, also at Tulane School of Medicine, from 1 July 1982 to 30 June 1983.

2.  The applicant's records also show that she served as a USPHS commissioned officer for a period of 4 years, 1 month, and 10 days from 1 July 1983 to 10 August 1987. 

3.  The Department of HHS is the U.S government's principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves.  Some of the Department's agencies are the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CSC), the Indian Health Service (IHS), and the USPHS Commissioned Corps.

4.  The USPHS Commissioned Corps is an elite team of more than 6,000 full-time, well-trained, highly-qualified public health professionals dedicated to delivering the Nation's public health promotion and disease prevention programs and advancing public health science.  Driven by a passion for public service, these men and women serve on the frontlines in the Nation's fight against disease and poor health conditions.  As one of America's seven uniformed services, the Commissioned Corps fills essential public health leadership and service roles within the Nation's Federal Government agencies and programs.  The Corps has officers in many professions, including physicians, dentists, nurses, pharmacists, engineers, dieticians, mental health specialists, psychologists, and clinical social workers.
5.  The applicant's Statement of Service as a USPHS Commissioned Officer (Formerly PHS 1867 - Equivalent to DD Form 214 [Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty]) shows that the applicant served as a physician in the USPHS from 1 July 1983 to 10 August 1987 and that she was honorably separated on 10 August 1987 and transferred to an inactive Reserve USPHS status.  This form further shows she completed 4 years, 1 month, and 10 days of USPHS commissioned officer service as a physician.

6.  The applicant's records also show that while she was assigned to the inactive Reserve of the USPHS (from 11 August 1987 to 5 September 1988) she worked at a part-time civilian job/practice; however, she was called to active duty on two separate occasions, as follows:

	a.  Department of HHS, Personnel Order Number 8144.035, dated 23 May 1988, shows she was called from inactive to active duty for a period of 12 days, from 30 May 1988 to 11 June 1988; and

	b.  Department of HHS, Personnel Order Number 8221.031, dated 8 August 1988, shows she was called from inactive to active duty for a period of 6 days, from 28 August 1988 to 2 September 1988.

7.  On 15 April 1988, the applicant applied for appointment as a commissioned officer in the MC of the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR).  On her application, she indicated that she served in the USPHS from 1 July 1983 to 10 August 1987 and in the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) from 11 August 1988 to the date of her application.

8.  On 29 June 1988, a DA Form 5074-R was initiated granting the applicant 9 years, 7 months, and 10 days of total CSC (4 years of CSC for her MD degree at Tulane University; 1 year of CSC for her Internship; 6 months of professional experience at the Indian Health Service; and 4 years, 1 month, and 10 days of CSC for her USPHS service). 

9.  On 20 August 1988, by memorandum, HRC-St. Louis, Missouri, notified the applicant that she was appointed as an MC CPT in the USAR for an indefinite term.  The memorandum credited the applicant with 9 years, 7 months, and 10 days of constructive credit.  On the same date HRC also published Orders A-08-000998, ordering the applicant to active duty as an obligated volunteer officer for a period of 3 years, effective 6 September 1988, with a follow on assignment to the U.S. Army Community Hospital, Fort Clayton, Panama, effective
21 November 1988, after completion of the Army Medical Department (AMEDD) Officer Basic Course.
10.  On 19 September 1988, Department of HHS, Personnel Order Number 8263.001, terminated the applicant's appointment in the IRR of the USPHS, effective 5 September 1988.

11.  The applicant's records show that she entered active duty and executed an oath of office on 6 September 1988 and subsequently attended the AMEDD Officer Basic Course at the Academy of Health Services, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, from 7 September 1988 to 15 November 1988. 

12.  On 14 June 1989, by memorandum, HRC-Alexandria, Virginia, notified the applicant that her active duty CPT DOR was computed under the provisions of chapter 6 of Army Regulation 624-100 (Officer Appointments, Promotions, and Demotions), and determined to be 26 January 1983.  

13.  On 8 March 1990, by memorandum, HRC-Alexandria, Virginia, notified the applicant that she was considered by the Army Special Selection Board under the criteria and instruction established for the regularly constituted selection board that adjourned on 24 March 1989, and that she was selected for promotion to MAJ, and was subsequently promoted to MAJ on 1 October 1989.

14.  The applicant's records also show she was promoted to lieutenant colonel (LTC) on 1 October 1995 and to colonel (COL) on 1 October 2001.

15.  An advisory opinion was obtained on 8 August 2008 from the Program Manager, Medical Corps Health Services Directorate, Headquarters, USAREC, Fort Knox, Kentucky.  The Program Manager stated that after a careful consideration of the applicant's request, it was determined that the applicant was not due any additional CSC based on the Department of Defense Instruction (DODI) 6000.13.  The DODI states that service on active duty or in an active status as a commissioned officer in any of the Uniform Services, in the corps or professional specialty in which being appointed, shall be credited on a day for day basis with any commissioned service performed before such appointment.  The applicant received 4 years, 1 month, and 10 days credit for active duty service performed as a commissioned officer in the USPHS from 1 July 1983 to 10 August 1987.  The additional CSC from 10 August 1987 to 5 September 1988 was not credited because of her Inactive Reserve status, as indicated in Personnel Order Number 8263.001, Appointment Termination Letter, dated 19 September 1988.

16.  The applicant was provided with a copy of the advisory opinion.  However, she responded directly to the Program Manager on 22 September stating that she maintained a commission with the USPHS during that year and that her 
release date from the USPHS was the day she accepted her active Army commission.  She further forwarded copies of the USPHS Orders for the 2 Reserve drills she completed in 1988 prior to entering the Army.  The Program Manager responded directly to the applicant stating that the two sets of orders she forwarded were proof that she was on an active status during the period in question and that he would issue a new advisory opinion.

17.  On 30 September 2008, a second advisory opinion was obtained in the processing of this case.  The Program Manager stated that:

	a.  After review of the applicant's records, it was determined that the applicant is entitled to additional CSC based on DODI 6000.13 (Medical Manpower and Personnel).  In addition to the 4 years, 1 months, and 10 days credit for active duty service performed as a commissioned officer in the USPHS from 1 July 1983 to 10 August 1987, additional credit between 10 August 1987 and
5 September should also be awarded for services rendered while assigned to an IRR status in the USPHS, and that a new DA Form 5074-R is completed with the new advisory opinion to show the total entry service credit based on DODI 6000.13.

	b.  Based on calculation of the applicant's entry service credit, the Program Manager stated that he believes the applicant should have been appointed as a major (MAJ)/O-4 at the time of her appointment on active duty on 6 September 1988, not a captain (CPT)/O-3 with 5 years, 7 months, and 10 days excess credit.  He also recommended the applicant be given appropriate entry service credit based on the new DA Form 5074-R and adjust her DOR accordingly.

18.  The applicant was furnished with a copy of the second advisory opinion on 1 October 2008, to which she concurred on 2 October 2008.

19.  On 15 October 2008, as a result of counting a period of service twice, a corrected DA Form 5074-R was issued.  This form shows the applicant is entitled to 10 years, 2 months, and 4 days of CSC.

20.  DODI 6000.13 implements policy, assigns responsibilities, and prescribes procedures to carry out medical manpower and personnel programs.  The DOD policy is that medical manpower, personnel, and compensation programs be established to provide the DOD Components with sufficient military medical personnel to meet all mission requirements.  A prospective health professions officer’s entry grade and rank within grade shall be determined by the number of years of entry grade credit awarded on original appointment, designation, or assignment as a health professions officer.  The entry grade credit to be awarded shall equal the sum of constructive service credit and prior commissioned service 
credit, except in cases where the total exceeds the maximum credit allowed, as stated in paragraph 6.1.3.  A period of time shall be counted only once when computing entry grade credit, and qualifying periods of less than one full year shall be proportionately credited to the nearest day, except where noted otherwise.

21.  Section 6.1.1.1 of the DODI states that credit for prior service as a commissioned officer (other than as a commissioned warrant officer) shall be granted to recognize previous commissioned experience, while maintaining cognizance of the level of professional knowledge, skill, and experience required at specific rank levels of each health profession.  For entry grade credit, the Medical Service Corps (MSC), the Biomedical Sciences Corps (BSC), and the Army Medical Specialist Corps (AMSC) are considered as the same Corps.  The Secretaries shall establish procedures to ensure the awarding of prior commissioned service credit is applied in an equitable and consistent manner. Credit shall be awarded as follows:

	a.  Service on active duty or in an active status as a commissioned officer in any of the Uniformed Services, in the corps or professional specialty in which being appointed, shall be credited on a day-for-day basis with any commissioned service performed before such appointment.

	b.  Service on active duty or in an active status as a commissioned officer in any of the Uniformed Services, but not in the corps or professional specialty in which being appointed, shall be awarded one-half day of credit for each day served in the case of individuals seeking an original appointment as a health professions officer.

	c.  Commissioned service on active duty or in an active status while participating in an educational program leading to appointment in a specialty in which constructive service credit is awarded, shall be awarded day-for-day credit for service performed. An officer on active duty or in an active status who completes a program that would qualify for credit under subparagraph 6.1.2.2., below, in less than the number of years normally required to complete such education, may be given constructive credit by the Secretary of the Military Department concerned in the amount of the difference between the actual number of years the officer took to complete and the amount of time normally required to complete the program.  The maximum constructive service creditable for completing such a program shall be the number of years (to the nearest year) normally required to complete the advanced education or receive the advanced degree.

22.  The DODI states, in pertinent part, that four years of constructive service credit shall be granted for completion of first professional degrees that include medical (M.D.).  Year-for-year credit shall be granted for the successful completion of internship, residency, fellowship or equivalent graduate medical, dental, or other formal professional training (i.e., clinical psychology internship or dietetic internship, required by the Military Service concerned.  Credit of one-half year for each year of experience, up to a maximum of three years of constructive credit, may be granted for experience in a health profession, if such experience is directly used by the Military Service concerned.  Creditable experience cannot predate the receipt of licensure, registration, or certification. Accordingly, volunteer, or student status cannot be credited.

23.  Army Regulation 135-101 prescribes policy, procedures, and eligibility criteria for appointment in the Reserve Components of the Army, with or without concurrent active duty, in the six branches of the Army Medical Department (AMEDD).  It states that commissioned officers of any Reserve Component (RC) of the Army who have served satisfactorily in the specialty for which they are applying may be appointed and/or called to active duty in the grade currently held if serving in the specialty for which applying or in the highest grade for which they can fully qualify by education and experience, gained after becoming professionally qualified, whichever selection would result in a higher grade or greater promotion service on the date of appointment.

24.  Grade and date of rank upon original appointment and assignment to an AMEDD branch will be determined by the number of years of entry grade credit awarded.  Except as limited by maximum credit limits (a below), entry grade credit granted will be the sum of constructive service credit and credit for prior active commissioned service.  Entry grade credit awarded to AMEDD officers upon appointment or assignment will be recorded on DA Form 5074-R for MC.  Table 3-1 of Army Regulation 135-101 describes the constructive service credit.  It states, in pertinent part that an MD Degree qualifies for 4 years of CSC; successful completion of internship or first-year graduate medical education which is approved by the American Medical Association qualifies for 1 year of CSC; graduate professional education (GPE) in a specialty required, approved by the AMA, and creditable toward certification qualifies for year-for-year CSC; and full-time experience not otherwise credited as a practicing physician, osteopath, or dentist after qualifying degree, qualifies for half-year for each year of experience, up to a maximum of 3 years.  Additional credit in unusual cases based on special education or professional experience in the specialty in which assigned when experience is accrued after qualifying degree and licensure is credited at 1 year for each year of special experience, provided that maximum credit was earned for full-time experience.

25.  USPHS Personnel Instruction 9, in effect at the time, prescribes the procedures for short tours of active duty for the Inactive Reserve Corps (IRC).  It states in pertinent part:

	a.  Authority:  Section 203 of the USPHS Act (42 U.S.C. 204) authorizes the establishment of an inactive reserve within the USPHS Commissioned Corps for the purpose of securing a reserve for duty in the Service in times of national emergency.  The USPHS Act provides that commissioned officers of the Reserve corps shall at all times be subject to Call to Active duty.  In nonemergency situations, an officer of the inactive Reserve is recalled to active duty only with his/her consent.  Under Section 216 of the PHS Act (42 U.S.C. 217), the President may, by Executive Order, declare the USPHS Commissioned Corps to be a military service and a branch of the land and naval forces of the United States and subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ).  When such an Executive Order has been issued, inactive Reserve officers may be recalled involuntarily to active duty as individuals, or under partial or total mobilization plans.

	b.  Appointment, Retention, and Reactivation of IRC Officers:  Selection of an officer for the USPHS IRC is usually made through placement in the inactive Reserve (inactivation) following a satisfactory tour of active duty in the Reserve corps or through appointment to the inactive Reserve of a former regular corps officer upon separation from active duty.  Infrequently, direct appointments in the IRC are made for shortage category specialists or professionals not otherwise obtainable.  To be eligible for consideration for such an appointment, applicants must meet established appointment criteria.

	c.  Appointment Upon Officer Separation:  An officer requesting separation from active duty in the USPHS Commissioned Corps may request an IRC appointment upon satisfactory completion of 2 years of active duty by completing a specific USPHS form.  If the Director, Division of Commissioned Personnel (DCP), determines that the officer meets the commissioned corps' requirements for appointment in the IRC, and there is an anticipated categorical need or likelihood that the specific officer may be recalled, the officer will be appointed at his/her permanent grade at time of inactivation and be so informed in the personnel order that relieves the officer from active duty, otherwise the officer’s commission will be terminated.

	d.  USPHS IRC Officers Benefits and Privileges/Longevity Credit.  Under 37 U.S.C. 205, IRC officers are authorized longevity credit for purposes of basic pay for time spent in an inactive status.  Longevity credit on a year-to-year basis will 
determine the individual's rate of basic pay should he/she return to active duty in USPHS.  Time spent in the IRC will also be credited for base-pay computation purposes if the officer resigns his/her USPHS commission and is appointed to another Uniformed Service.

	e.  Resignation and Termination of Commissions of IRC Officers.  An IRC officer's commission may be terminated in the following manner and for the following reasons.  An officer may voluntarily terminate his/her inactive commission at any time prior to the promulgation of an Executive Order militarizing the USPHS Commissioned Corps.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant completed a four-year MD degree and a one-year internship at Tulane University.  She subsequently entered the USPHS as a commissioned officer and completed 4 years, 1 month, and 10 days of prior active commissioned service.  Her entitlement to 9 years, 1 month, and 10 days of CSC is not in question.  The issue is the amount of CSC entitlement while she was in the inactive Reserve from 11 August 1987 to 5 September 1988.

2.  During the applicant's service in the inactive Reserve of the USPHS from 11 August 1987 to 5 September 1988, she was employed as a physician at a different location, gaining professional experience, albeit in an inactive Reserve status.  During this period, she was called from inactive to active duty on two separate occasions and appears to have performed 22 days of active service.  

3.  The DODI states that "service on active duty or in an active status as a commissioned officer in any of the Uniformed Services, in the corps or professional specialty in which being appointed, shall be credited on a day-for-day basis with any commissioned service performed before such appointment."  The applicant was entitled to that portion of active duty she performed. 

4.  It appears that when the DA Form 5074-R was prepared on 29 August 1988, she was granted the more advantageous CSC for the period of inactive Reserve, at the rate of one-half year for each year of experience in a health profession, if such experience is directly used by the Army, vice 22 days of active duty performed.  Had she not been given 6 months of CSC for professional 
experience during the period 11 August 19867 to 10 August 1988, she would have received 22 days credit for her active drills performed during the period of inactive service.


5.  The reconstructed DA Form 5074-R credited the applicant with 5 years, 2 months, and 4 days of CSC (day-for-day) from 1 July 1983 (the date she began her active service with the USPHS) to 5 September 1988 (the date prior to entering active duty).  However, notwithstanding the advisory opinion and the resulting reconstructed DA Form 5074-R, the applicant was in an active status from 1 July 1983 to 10 August 1987 and in an inactive Reserve status from 11 August 1987 to 5 September 1988.  She could not equally receive day-for day CSC for both an active period of service and an inactive period. 

6.  It appears that the applicant's original DA Form 5074-R, dated 29 August 1988, awarded her the one-half year for her one year of experience from
11 August 1987 to 10 August 1988 and it also appears that the form was prepared correctly and requires no further adjustment.   The one-half year of professional experience combined with her 9 years, 1 month, and 10 days of CSC adds up to 9 years, 7 months, and 10 days of CSC, which she in fact received.  Therefore, there is no error or injustice noted.

7.  The applicant was appointed as a CPT on 5 September 1988 with 9 years, 7 months, and 10 days of CSC.  By rule, she only needed 4 years to be appointed as a CPT.  Therefore, the excess 5 years, 7 months, and 10 days of CSC was used to adjust her DOR as CPT to 26 January 1983, which is correctly shown on her records.

8.  Based on the correct CSC and correct adjusted DOR as CPT, the applicant was appropriately and timely considered for promotion to MAJ, LTC, and COL.  Therefore, there is no error or injustice noted.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___X_____  ___X_____  ___X_____  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.



      ________XXX______________
               CHAIRPERSON
      
I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case.


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