DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS 701 S. COURTHOUSE ROAD, SUITE 1001 ARLINGTON, VA 22204-2490 Docket No. 2560-20 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 relevant portions of your naval record and your application, 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. A three-member panel of the Board, sitting in executive session, considered your application on 16 April 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 enlisted in the Navy Reserve in March 2014. After completing your initial training, you were released from active duty on 30 May 2015. You were mobilized on 1 June 2018 for a period of approximately 12 months. During that time, you reported symptoms associated with shortness of breath, left shoulder pain, left thumb pain, left knee pain, and trouble sleeping. However, you were medically cleared for separation from active duty on 3 May 2019 with a recommendation that you receive Line of Duty (LOD) medical treatment benefits after your transition to inactive duty. You subsequently were released from active duty on 10 June 2019 at the completion of your obligated active-duty service and assigned a RE-1 reentry code. On 7 January 2020, you were approved for LOD health care benefits for 12 months, retroactive to 20 April 2019, for a partial tear of your left ACL and left shoulder impingement. The Department of Veterans Affairs also assigned you a combined disability rating of 40% in January 2020. The Board carefully considered your request to change your narrative reason for separation on your 10 June 2019 DD Form 214 to disability. You assert that you qualify for the change based on injuries suffered during your period of active duty in 2018 and 2019. Unfortunately, the Board disagreed with your rationale for relief. In order to be found unfit for continued naval service, a Service member must be unable to perform the duties of their office, grade, rank, or rating as a result of a qualifying disability condition. In your case, the Board concluded that the preponderance of the evidence did not support such a finding. First, you were medically cleared for separation on 3 May 2019. The Manual of the Medical Department Chapter 15-20 requires separation examinations and evaluations for active-duty members and provides that comprehensive evaluations are conducted for the purposes of ensuring that Service members have not developed any medical conditions while in receipt of base pay that might constitute a disability that should be processed by the Physical Evaluation Board (PEB) and to ensure Servicemembers are physically qualified for recall to additional periods of active duty. Thus, the standards for being physically qualified to separate are the same as those being qualified to continue active duty Service . . . . Since you were medically cleared for separation, the Board determined that you were qualified for continued active duty despite the existence of conditions that may have required continued medical treatment. In the Board’s opinion, this separation physical determination of fitness for continued active duty is corroborated by the assignment of an unrestricted reentry code on your 10 June 2019 DD Form 214. Second, the Board considered your 19 May 2019 performance evaluation in which you earned a performance trait average well above fleet standards, a promotion recommendation, positive performance comments, and a retention recommendation. This was strong evidence to the Board that you were performing the duties of your office, grade, rank, or rating well despite the existence of disability conditions. Third, the fact you were assigned LOD benefits after your release from active duty was not persuasive to the Board, since those benefits only authorized the continued treatment for your disability conditions while you remain in the Navy Reserve. While you may eventually qualify for a referral to the Disability Evaluation System and issuance of a disability discharge, that question is not yet ripe for the Board’s consideration since you have not yet exhausted your administrative rights to request a LOD referral to the Disability Evaluation System. Fourth, the fact the VA assigned you a disability rating was determined not to be probative on the issue of unfitness as of June 2019, since eligibility for compensation and pension disability ratings by the VA is tied to the establishment of service connection and is manifestation-based without a requirement that unfitness for military duty be demonstrated. 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, 4/21/2020