IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	        19 MAY 2009

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20090000366 


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 reconsideration of his previous request for award of the Combat Medical Badge for his service in Afghanistan from 1 May 2003 through 1 February 2004 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

2.  The applicant states that evidence in his original packet shows that he is fully qualified and meets the criteria for award of the Combat Medical Badge.  He states that he was serving as a Medical Service Corps officer; that he was serving as a captain; that he was attached to the 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) assigned, attached, or under the operational control of a combat unit requirement; that he participated in Operation Warrior Sweep; and that he provided medical treatment to unit personnel upon detonation of an improvised explosive device (IED) and while under enemy small arms fire.  He states that after his request for the Combat Medical Badge was denied, a request for the Combat Action Badge was submitted.  He states that the awarding authority disapproved the award on the grounds that the medical unit members of the 3rd Special Forces Group were ineligible for award of the Combat Action Badge because they were only eligible for the Combat Medical Badge.

3.  The applicant provides in support of his applicant two statements, dated 31 August 2008 and 17 September 2008, signed by individuals who contend that they were present with him in Afghanistan at the time of the incident to which he refers and providing additional details regarding the incident; a copy of Headquarters, Department of the Army, Letter 600-05-1 pertaining to eligibility for award of the Combat Action Badge; a copy of a letter from the Director, Army Board for Correction of Military Records, dated 5 February 2008, notifying him of the decision that was made in his case.

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 AR20070009897 on 31 January 2008.

2.  On 12 August 1994, the applicant accepted an appointment in the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) in the rank of second lieutenant.  He went on to successfully complete the Army Medical Department Officer Basic Course and the Army Medical Department Reserve Component Officer Advanced Course.

3.  The applicant was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant on 6 September 1996.  He was awarded the Expert Field Medical Badge on 29 August 1996 and he was promoted to the rank of captain on 25 July 1998.  He went on to successfully complete the Medical Logistics Management Course Reserve Component on 12 May 2000.

4.  The applicant was deployed to Afghanistan on 1 May 2003 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and he was assigned to the Combined Joint Task Force as a Health Services Materiel Officer.

5.  The available records indicate that he was assigned to Forward Operating Base 31, 1st Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne), Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force (CJSOTF), in support of Operation Warrior Sweep Phase IV from 28 August 2003 to 1 September 2003 and that he came in direct contact with enemy forces which included IEDs and direct fire.

6.  On 20 November 2003, the applicant's commander, a civil affairs colonel, recommended the applicant and six other members of the applicant's team for award of the CMB based on the 28 August 2003 attack on their convoy by enemy personnel.  On 19 November 2004, the U.S. Army Human Resources Command disapproved the recommendation contending that there was insufficient evidence to support the award of the CMB based on the lack of evidence to show that the unit actually engaged in ground combat.  The applicant and other individuals were advised to apply to this Board.

7.  The applicant returned to the Continental United States on 29 January 2004 and he was released from active duty (REFRAD) on 11 March 2004.  The DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) that he was furnished at the time of his REFRAD shows that he was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal (Second Award), the Army Achievement Medal, the National Defense Service Medal (Second Award), the Armed Forces Reserve Medal with "M" Device, the Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the Expert Field Medical Badge, and the Air Assault Badge.

8.  The available records show that the applicant is currently a member of the USAR serving in the rank of major.  On 29 August 2005, during a second mobilization, he was awarded the Combat Action Badge (CAB) for actively engaging the enemy on 4 January 2005.

9.  The two memoranda that the applicant submits in support of his request for reconsideration are dated 31 August 2008 and 17 September 2008 and they are authored by individuals who contend that they were present with the applicant when he served in Afghanistan.  In the memoranda, the two individuals provide details of the applicant's duties and responsibilities while he was in Afghanistan.  They also provide details of an IED detonating on the command vehicle, small arms fire that was received from various angles as the IED detonated, and details of the applicant dismounting his vehicle and performing medical assessments on convoy personnel, treating injured personnel he encountered as they assumed a defensive posture.  Both individuals state that once the threat had been neutralized, the "team" mounted their vehicles and departed the area.  Both of the authors of the memoranda state that the information contained in their memoranda were details contained in the Situation Report for the incident.  It is also noted that a search of the records of the seven individuals recommended for award of the CMB for the action on 28 August 2003 revealed that they were subsequently awarded the CAB for that action.

10.  The copy of Headquarters, Department of the Army, Letter 600-05-1 that the applicant submits in support of his request for reconsideration provides the eligibility requirements for award of the Combat Action Badge.

11.  The Combat Medical Badge was originally established as the Medical Badge.  The Combat Medical Badge was created by the War Department on 1 March 1945.  It could be awarded to officers, warrant officers, and enlisted Soldiers of the Medical Department assigned or attached to the medical detachment of infantry regiments, infantry battalions, and elements thereof designated as infantry in tables of organization or tables of organization and equipment.  Its evolution stemmed from a requirement to recognize medical aid-men who shared the same hazards and hardships of ground combat on a daily basis.

12.  Paragraph 8-7b(4)(a) of Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides that on or after 18 September 2001, medical personnel assigned or attached to or under operational control of any ground Combat Arms unit (not to include members assigned or attached to Aviation units) of brigade or smaller size who satisfactorily perform medical duties while the unit is engaged in active ground combat, provided they are personally present and under fire, are eligible for award of the Combat Medical Badge.  However, retroactive awards under these criteria are not authorized for service prior to 18 September 2001.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends that he should be awarded the Combat Medical Badge for his service in Afghanistan from 1 May 2003 through 1 February 2004 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

2.  His contentions have been noted along with the new evidence that he has submitted in support of his request for reconsideration.  Based on all of the available documentation it appears that the applicant meets the criteria contained in Army Regulation 600-8-22 for award of the Combat Medical Badge.

3.  The supporting documents that he now submits and the documents contained in his official records show that he was medical officer, that he provided medical treatment as a result of an IED detonation and small arms fire from various angles, that he was attached to a special forces unit, and that he engaged in active ground combat while satisfactorily performing medical duties.  He is clearly entitled to the award of the Combat Medical Badge and his DD Form 214 should be amended to include this award.

4.  In view of the foregoing, it would now be in the interest of justice to correct the applicant’s records as recommended below.

BOARD VOTE:

___X_____  ___X_____  ___X_____  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION



BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant amendment of the ABCMR’s decision in Docket Number AR20070009897, dated 31 January 2008.  As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by awarding him the Combat Medical Badge effective 28 August 2003 and amending his DD Form  214 to reflect this award.

2.  The Board wants the applicant and all others to know that the sacrifices he made in service to the United States during the Global War on Terrorism are deeply appreciated.  The applicant and all Americans should be justifiably proud of his service in arms.



      _________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.
ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20090000366



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20090000366



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