DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY 
BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS 
701 S. COURTHOUSE ROAD, SUITE 1001 
ARLINGTON, VA 22204-2490 

Docket No. 145-20 
Ref: Signature Date 

This is in reference to your application for correction of your naval record pursuant to Title 10, United States Code, Section 1552.  After careful and conscientious consideration of the entire record, the Board for Correction of Naval Records (Board) found the evidence submitted was insufficient to establish the existence of probable material error or injustice.  Consequently, your application has been denied. 

Although your application was not filed in a timely manner, the Board found it in the interest of justice to waive the statute of limitations and consider your case on its merits.  A three-member panel of the Board for Correction of Naval Records, sitting in executive session, considered your application on 27 February 2020.  The names and votes of the members of the panel will be furnished upon request. Your allegations of error and injustice were reviewed in accordance with administrative regulations and procedures applicable to the proceedings of this Board.  Documentary material considered by the Board consisted of your application, together with all material submitted in support thereof, relevant portions of your naval record and applicable statutes, regulations and policies.  
 
A review of your record shows that you entered active duty with the Navy in August 2007.  After an initial assignment to USS              , you were assigned temporarily to                       ,             followed by an assignment to            Legal Service Office,  in October 2008.  You were eventually transferred back to your ship in October 2009, where you served until your administrative discharge for condition not a disability on 25 February 2010.  Post-discharge, you assert that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) assigned you a 100% disability rating. 

The Board carefully considered your arguments that you deserve a change to your narrative reason for separation to disability.  You assert that the VA’s decision to assign you a disability rating for the condition that served as the basis for your discharge from the Navy substantiates your claim.  Unfortunately, the Board disagreed with your rationale for relief.  In order to qualify for a disability discharge, a service member must be unfit for continued naval service due to a qualifying disability condition.  The military disability regulations identify certain medical conditions that do not qualify as disability conditions under the Disability Evaluation System.  Additionally, there are physical or behavioral conditions which impair a service member’s  performance but do not amount to a physical disability.  Therefore, there may be times when a service member receives a VA rating for a medical condition that does not qualify for military disability benefits at the time of a member’s discharge.  In your case, a medical provider determined your condition did not meet the requirements for referral to the Disability Evaluation System.  Absent evidence that contradicts that medical determination by the Navy, the Board concluded the preponderance of the evidence does not support relief.  Accordingly, the Board found insufficient evidence of error or injustice to warrant a change to your record. 
 
It is regretted that the circumstances of your case are such that favorable action cannot be taken.  You are entitled to have the Board reconsider its decision upon submission of new matters, which will require you to complete and submit a new DD Form 149.  New matters are those not previously presented to or considered by the Board.  In this regard, it is important to keep in mind that a presumption of regularity attaches to all official records.  Consequently, when applying for a correction of an official naval record, the burden is on the applicant to  demonstrate the existence of probable material error or injustice.   

Sincerely, 


3/5/2020