IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 20 September 2012
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20120005057
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, in effect, correction of his records to show he is eligible for Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) based on service-connected disabilities.
2. He states he believes the CRSC decision did not consider his supporting letter in regard to his injury and follow-up visits to the medics. He maintains that all his field records during gunnery, Army Training and Evaluation Programs (ARTEP's), and field training exercises (FTX's) are missing from his medical record. He adds that his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) was not found to be torn and gone until 30 years later with the help of modern medicine.
3. He provides his DD Form 2860 (Claim for CRSC), dated 22 January 2010, and U.S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC) letters, dated 6 April 2010 and 14 January 2011.
CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:
1. The applicant is a retired Army staff sergeant/E-6 who initially enlisted in the Regular Army on 29 January 1975 in military occupational specialty (MOS) 11B (Light Weapons Infantryman). He was later reclassified to MOS 44E (Machinist). He served in a variety of stateside and overseas assignments. On 31 July 1995, he was honorably retired and credited with completing 20 years and 8 days of active duty service.
2. On 22 January 2010, the applicant completed his claim for CRSC in which he listed that his initial disability rating from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) was 10 percent. The rating was increased to 20 percent on 5 November 2008 for torn right knee cartilage, status post-arthroscopy.
3. On 6 April 2010, HRC responded to his claim for CRSC. HRC verified the applicant received a total combat-related disability rating of 10 percent effective January 2004 with the following justification/commitments:
* impaired hearing, ears, 0 percent documentation verifies disability as combat-related
* tinnitus ears, 10 percent, previously awarded verified percent and effective date
4. HRC indicated it was unable to verify his combat-related disability for the following:
* fungal dermatitis, feet and right hand, 10 percent condition does not meet the criteria for CRSC
* traumatic arthritis, right knee, 10 percent documentation does not show accident or incident to connect disability to combat-related event does show complained of knee pain after jumping out of bed in 1976 and re-injury while playing basketball in 1988
5. On 14 January 2011, HRC notified the applicant that it had reviewed all the evidence he provided and was still unable to find justification to reverse its previous decisions made on his CRSC.
6. CRSC, as established by Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1413a, 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 were not 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, especially 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-percent disabling. 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.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The CRSC criteria are specifically for those military retirees who have combat-related disabilities. The military retiree must show the disability was incurred while engaged in combat, while performing duties simulating combat conditions, or while performing especially hazardous duties such as parachuting or scuba diving.
2. Although he argues his ACL is torn and gone and that the injury occurred, in effect, during gunnery, ARTEP's, and FTX's, he has provided no medical documentation to support his claim. CRSC determinations require evidence of a direct causal relationship to the military retiree's VA rated disabilities to war or the simulation of war.
3. There is no evidence of record and he did not provide any evidence to establish a direct causal relationship to his VA rated disabilities to war or the simulation of war. In view of the foregoing, there is an insufficient evidentiary basis for granting the applicant's requested relief.
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 the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis for correction of the records of the individual concerned.
____________x_____________
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) AR20120005057
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