IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 13 May 2021 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20210005940 APPLICANT REQUESTS: Retroactive entitlement to payment of the Health Professions Officer Retention Bonus (HPORB) covering the period of 18 March 2019 through 18 March 2020. APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record) * Officer Record Brief (ORB), dated 26 May 2020 * Email correspondence, dated 9 April 2020 FACTS: 1. The applicant states his Active Duty Service Obligation (ADSO) was completed on 17 March 2019. He was not informed of the completion of his ADSO, and as such, was not able to apply for the HPORB for the 18 March 2019 to 18 March 2020 timeframe. He is still on active duty. Further, he signed a four-year retention bonus which ends on 9 April 2022. Attached to his application is an email from the Office of the Surgeon General (OTSG) who determined his ADSO was incorrectly entered. When the error was discovered, he had already completed one year of active duty and had not received a HPORB. He would like to know if his current contract start date can be adjusted to 18 March 2019 and receive the HPORB on the four-year payment scale. 2. A review of the applicant’s available service records reflects the following: a. On 24 May 2009, the Doctor of Medicine degree was conferred upon the applicant. b. On 4 June 2009, he was appointed as a Regular Army commissioned officer in the Medical Corps in Area of Concentration (AOC) 62B (Field Surgeon) and executed an oath of office. c. On 11 January 2017, the applicant was approved for the Health Professions Officer (HPO) Incentive Pay (IP) in AOC 61F (Internal Medicine) at a rate of $43,000.00 a year, paid on a prorated monthly basis, effective 14 February 2017. d. On 9 April 2020, the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners validated a license for the applicant as a Medical Doctor issued on 6 February 2018 through 30 April 2022. e. On 24 April 2020 he submitted his approved request for HPORB in AOC 61F. The completed application reflects entitlement to a $35,000.00 annual RB for a continuous active duty obligation to begin on 9 April 2020. f. The applicant did not submit nor does a review of the available personnel records reflect a submitted request for HPORB for the requested period. 3. The applicant provides: a. ORB providing a summary of his military service. b. Email communication, dated 8 April 2020, wherein OTSG ensured his ADSO was completed as of March 2019 and the systems were corrected to reflect that. 4. On 7 April 2021, in the processing of this case, an advisory opinion was received from OTSG, Chief Army Medical Department (AMEDD), Special Pay Branch. The advisory official recommended approval of the applicant's request. It states in pertinent part: a. Applicant indicates he was not informed that his ADSO expired 17 March 2017, and that he may have been eligible for a multi-year HPORB effective 18 March 2019. In turn, he requests his current 4-year HPORB effective date be changed from 9 April 2020 to 18 March 2019. b. Considered under the discretionary category of special pay as HPORB (Title 37 United States Code (USC), section 335(a)(3), requests for a HPORB agreement are initiated by the officer through their command's supporting Human Resource, Personnel, or S-1 office. Officer is eligible upon completion of qualifying training, and completed accession or loan repayment obligation, or completed pre- commissioning/commissioning initial education/training obligation. Eligibility criteria further requires officer to possess a current, active, valid, and unrestricted license from a State, U.S. Commonwealth, or territory; be credentialed, privileged, and practicing (minimum 40-hours/year); must not be in a two-time non-selection status for promotion; no suspension of personnel action, passed Army physical fitness test and Army body composition program standards, and will continue to meet the standards for the length of the agreement period. c. Officers must bear responsibility for their part of the discretionary special pay agreement process, to include knowing their obligation to the Army, initiating inquiry as to special pay eligibility, requesting agreements to be initiated, and executing the agreement by signature up to 90-days in advance or within 30-days after effective date; otherwise, effective date must be reestablished as date of signature. All agreements executed outside of the policy for signature date or received outside the funded fiscal year, are returned without action. d. A review of supporting documentation, and available personnel, special pay and finance data indicates based on the supplied email dialogue, that the applicant inquiry as to his current training ADSO occurred on or about 8 April 2020, which corrected the ADSO to 17 March 2019. He then executed his first 4-year HPORB at $35,000.00/year effective for payment and obligation 9 April 2020 to 8 April 2024. e. The applicant was eligible to execute his first multi-year HPORB effective 18 March 2019. There is no one-year payment scenario for the missed year, because the agreement would become a nonexistent/not authorized 5-year agreement. If his 4-year HPORB agreement effective date for payment and obligation is changed from 9 April 2020 – 8 April 2024 to 18 March 2019 – 17 March 2023, Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS)-IN would make adjustment to the current release payments and future payments to ensure full payment for the 4-year period. There is no adjustment to annual taxes; date of disbursement determines tax year. His Total Officer Personnel Management Information System (TOPMIS) ADSO (DTMSPO) would need to be changed from 8 April 2024 to 17 March 2023. 5. On 25 March 2021 the applicant was provided a copy of the advisory opinion and afforded 10 days to provide comments. In response, the applicant supported the opinion of the AMEDD Special Pays Branch. BOARD DISCUSSION: After reviewing the application and all supporting documents, the Board found that relief was warranted. The Board carefully considered applicant’s request, the military records, an advisory opinion, and regulatory guidance. The Board considered the applicant’s statement, documents provided by the applicant and the review and conclusion of the advisory findings. The Board concurred with the OTSG advisory opinion that the applicant met the requirements and was eligible Health Professions Officer Retention Bonus (HPORB) covering the period of 18 March 2019 through 18 March 2020 at #35,000 per year. The Board granted relief with the recommendation for Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS)-IN to make adjustment to the current release payments and future payments to ensure full payment for the 4-year period. BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 X X X GRANT FULL RELIEF : : : GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF : : : GRANT FORMAL HEARING : : : DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: 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 the applicant as a 4-year HPORB agreement at $35,000 per year with an effective date for payment and obligation changed from 9 April 2020 – 8 April 2024 to 18 March 2019 – 17 March 2023, Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS)-IN would make adjustment to the current release payments and future payments to ensure full payment for the 4-year period. 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. REFERENCES: 1. Department of Defense Financial Management Regulation, 7000.14-R, Volume 7A, chapter 5 provides that Health Professions Officers (HPO) who entered into a written agreement for receipt of a special pay (Multiyear Special Pay; Incentive Special Pay; Additional Special Pay) on or before 27 January 2018 will, if otherwise qualified, continue to receive payments until completion of the written agreement. Effective 28 January 2018, all new agreements for special pays will be administered in accordance with the new guidance. Fully qualified Internists are eligible for receipt of a $35,000 RB paid annually. 2. Title 37 United States Code (U.S.C.) Section 335 (Special Bonus Incentive Pay) states the Secretary of the Army may pay Health Professions Incentive Pay to an officer in a regular or reserve component of a uniformed service who is entitled to basic pay under section 204 of this title or compensation under section 206 of this title and is serving on active duty or in an active status in a designated health profession specialty or skill. To receive a bonus under this section, an officer determined to be eligible for the bonus shall enter into a written agreement with the Secretary concerned that specifies, the amount of the bonus; the method of payment of the bonus under subsection (e)(2) (lump sum or installments); the period of obligated service; whether the service will be performed on active duty in an active status in or in a Reserve Component. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20210005940 5 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1