IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	    13 March 2014

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20130017929 


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 correction of his U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) Service Agreement to show:

* he incurred a 3-year service obligation under the Specialized Training Assistance Program (STRAP), vice a 4-year obligation
* his Heath Professionals Loan Repayment (HPLR) anniversary date as 9 November vice 30 March

2.  The applicant states:

	a.  His STRAP service obligation should reflect 3 years of payback instead of 4 years in accordance with 18 months of STRAP enrollment.  He is fully prepared to repay any monies paid to him under the current contract dates.  He was told he could not change STRAP and if extra payments were made to him, he could not stop them.  His HPLR anniversary date should coincide with his commissioning date which was confirmed as the proper date.

	b.  He is very proud and eager to serve and takes his obligation very seriously.  His goal is to have the errors in his USAR contract corrected to reflect the terms he agreed to throughout the application process.  It was explained to him that he must be enrolled in STRAP during his residency to maintain a non-deployable status.  If not, he could be pulled out of residency and deployed.  He would not be eligible for the monthly stipend, but only able to receive monthly drill pay if he were to drill with a unit.

	c.  This information was provided by Mr. N____ G____ at Media Cross and Sergeant First Class (SFC) L____ W____, at the Wilkes-Barre, PA, recruiting office.  As he was part way through residency already, and knowing the service obligation for the STRAP stipend, he was very careful in questioning both Mr. N____ G____ and SFC L____ W____.  Both parties informed him that he would be allowed to take 18 months of STRAP to ensure a maximum 3-year payback obligation.

	d.  When Mr. N____ G____ called him and told him he had been approved for commissioning, he was told it needed to be done as soon as possible.  He was instructed he could end his STRAP payments early (18 months instead of 19 months) to guarantee the 3-year obligation.  This information was reiterated by SFC L____ W____ the day he signed his contract in the presence of his father, a retired command sergeant major.  His father was skeptical of Army contracts and wanted to hear it himself.

	e.  He contacted the U.S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC) and was told the information was incorrect and the recruiter commissioned him too early, resulting in 1 extra year of service obligation.  This is not what he agreed to and email between himself and SFC L____ W____ confirms this.  His DA Form 5685 (New STRAP Service Agreement) shows SFC L____ W____ was trying to calculate the 18-month STRAP with early ending dates.  He was told by HRC that although he signed them, SFC L____ W____ never submitted them, they are not in his contract, and it would not have been enforceable because the dates were incorrect.

	f.  It may be true that STRAP enrollment must continue to the end of one's residency; however, that is not what was relayed to him and it was obviously not what the recruiters thought or represented to be true.  The U.S. Army Recruiting Command (USAREC) reviewed this information and it was their opinion that the obligation date in his contract was accurate.  They instructed him to petition the Army Board for Correction of Military Records.

	g.  Upon commissioning, he was told his HPLR anniversary date would be the date he was commissioned; however, he has since been told by Ms. C____ C____, HRC, that his HPLR date is March 30, the date his "orders were cut."  This has been extremely stressful for him and his family.  They have gone from a family looking at 20 years of service to his spouse asking when he can get out.  He is hoping for a quick resolution to these issues and looks forward to a long, successful USAR career.

3.  The applicant provides an HRC memorandum, dated 9 November 2011; HRC Orders C-03-204778; a DA Form 5685; a self-authored letter, dated 29 April 2013, seven pages of email; and a memorandum for record, dated 6 September 2013.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant was appointed as an Army Medical Department (AMEDD) USAR commissioned officer in the rank of captain (CPT) and he executed a DA Form 71 (Oath of Office – Military Personnel) on 9 November 2011.

2.  HRC Orders C-03-204778, dated 30 March 2012, assigned him to the U.S. Army Medical Command (MEDCOM) STRAP, Forest Park, GA, effective 9 November 2011.

3.  The applicant provided a DA Form 5685, dated 9 November 2011, wherein it stated, in part:

	a.  In connection with his participation in the New STRAP, he acknowledged that he incurred an obligation to serve in the Ready or Selected Reserve (SELRES) on successful completion of the STRAP in return for the financial assistance he received under the New STRAP.  He further agreed to fulfill his service obligation in a troop program unit (TPU) of the Army National Guard (ARNG) or USAR or as an Individual Mobilization Augmentee.  In return, he would serve 2 years in a TPU for each year, or part of thereof, during which he received a monthly stipend.

	b.  He was scheduled to commence participation in the New STRAP on 5 November 2011 and to complete his specialized training on 23 June 2013.  Therefore, if he received a stipend during this period, the service obligation he incurred would end on 4 June 2016.  The applicant and the service representative, SFC L____ W____, signed this form on 9 November 2011.

4.  His records contain an AMEDD Officer – USAR Commissioning Service Agreement, dated 22 November 2011, wherein it stated, in part, in connection with his commission in the USAR he had been selected for the HPLR and STRAP.

	a.  He acknowledged that with his commission in the USAR, he met the criteria for the HPLR Program and qualified for service in critical specialty 61H (Family Medicine).  His HPLR eligibility date would be determined based on the effective date of orders assigning him to the SELRES.  Each complete satisfactory year of service performed under the agreement established an anniversary date.

	b.  He further acknowledged he was scheduled to commence participation in the New STRAP on 9 November 2011, to complete his specialized training on 23 June 2013, and the service obligation he incurred would end on 22 June 2017.  The applicant and the service representative, CPT T____ S____, signed this form on 23 November 2011.

	c.  Included with this contract was a USAREC Form 1105 (STRAP Enrollment Verification), dated 8 February 2011, wherein the program director verified the applicant was a resident in the United Health Services Hospital (UHSH) Family Medicine Program, Johnson City, NY; the program starting date was 24 June 2010 and the anticipated completion date was 23 June 2013.

5.  On 15 March 2013, the applicant contacted HRC and spoke with Ms. C____ C____.  She stated his HPLR anniversary date was 30 March as the anniversary date was based on the date the original appointment orders were published and not the effective date.

6.  The applicant provided a memorandum for record, dated 6 September 2013, wherein Mr. D____ D____, Education Services Specialist, Fort George G Meade, MD, stated, in part, the applicant's DA Form 5685, dated 9 November 2011, showed he would receive a stipend under the STRAP commencing 5 November 2011, would complete his resident training on 23 June 2013, and his contractual obligation date would be 4 June 2016.  The starting date could not be 5 November 2011 as he wasn't commissioned until 9 November 2011 and his service obligation date should have been 23 June 2017.  He stated the applicant only wanted a 3-year contract obligation for STRAP and the applicant wasn't told he was incurring an extra year.

7.  In the processing of this case an advisory opinion was obtained from the Program Manager, Health Services Directorate, USAREC dated 14 January 2014.  The advisory official recommended disapproval of the applicant's request to change his obligation date.  The advisory official opined, in part, that:

	a.  The applicant was given the correct obligation ending date on the STRAP contract he signed on 22 November 2011.  According to Army Regulation 135-7 (ARNG and USAR – Incentive Programs), an officer who participates in the New STRAP incurs an obligation to serve 2 years for each year or partial year in which he or she received financial assistance.  The contractual obligation is incurred when the officer signs the DA Form 5685 (or service agreement/
contract).

	b.  The applicant signed a DA Form 5685 on 9 November 2011 in which it stated participation would begin on 5 November 2011 and would complete on 23 June 2013.  This initial agreement stated an obligation ending date of 4 June 2016.  The participation dates were calculated incorrectly and his contract needed to be adjusted because his obligation of 19 months should have reflected a 4-year obligation (from 23 June 2013).

	c.  He then signed a contract on 22 November 2011 that stated participation would begin on 9 November 2011, would complete on 23 June 2013, and reflected an obligation ending date of 23 June 2017.  According to the signed contract, the applicant was aware of the service obligation date at that time.

8.  On 16 January 2014, the applicant was provided a copy of the advisory opinion for information and an opportunity to submit comments or a rebuttal.  He did not respond.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends his USAR service agreement should be corrected to show he incurred a 3-year service obligation under the STRAP and his HPLR anniversary date should be corrected to show 9 November.

2.  The service agreement the applicant entered into on 22 November 2011 confirmed the HPLR anniversary date would be the effective date of the orders assigning him to the SELRES.  It appears that HRC made an error when it listed his HPLR anniversary date as the date the orders were published, 30 March, and not the stated effective date of 9 November.  Therefore, he is entitled to correction of his records to show his HPLR anniversary date as 9 November.

3.  With respect to his service obligation date, the DA Form 5685 he signed on 9 November 2011 shows he acknowledged he would be required to serve for 2 years in the USAR for each year, or part thereof, during which he received a stipend under the STRAP as of the date of completion of his STRAP.  Although this form showed his service obligation date as 4 June 2016, it should have been obvious to the applicant and his recruiter that this was an error as his residency completion date was listed as 23 June 2013.  Whether he received the STRAP for 18 months or 19 months, his service obligation date would have been 23 June 2017.

4.  This error was apparently caught quickly by USAREC officials and on 22 June 2011, less than 2 weeks later, he signed a service agreement wherein he acknowledged he understood that based on his residency completion date of 23 June 2013, his service obligation date was 23 June 2017.  In view of the foregoing, he is not entitled to correction of his service agreement to show he incurred a 3-year service obligation.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF 

____X____  ___X_____  ___X_____  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION


BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined the evidence presented is sufficient to warrant a recommendation for partial relief.  As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by showing his HPLR anniversary day as 9 November.

2.  The Board further determined the evidence presented is insufficient to warrant a portion of the requested relief.  As a result, the Board recommends denial of so much of the application that pertains to the correction of his service obligation date.



      _______________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)                                         AR20130017929



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20130017929



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