IN THE CASE OF: 
BOARD DATE: 11 February 2022
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20210009225 


APPLICANT REQUESTS:  the following: 

•in effect, retroactive payment for the Medical Specialty Pay, at $25,000.00/yearly,in the U. S. Army Reserve (USAR)

•a personal appearance before the Board (telephonic)



APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: 

•DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record)

•Timeline document

•Recommendation for Reserve of the Army Appointment memorandum

•U. S. Army Recruiting Command (USAREC) Form 601-37, 48 (USAR and ArmyNational Guard Incentives Declaration Statement)

•Statement for Commissioning of Army Medical Department (AMEDD) OfficerUSAR

•DA Form 5074-1-R (Record of Award of Entry Grade Credit (Health ServicesOfficers))

•three DA Forms 71 (Oath of Office – Military Personnel)

•email correspondence and MRB Form 1 (Declination Request)



FACTS: 

1.The applicant did not file within the three-year time frame provided in Title 10, UnitedStates Code, section 1552(b); however, the Army Board for Correction of MilitaryRecords (ABCMR) conducted a substantive review of this case and determined it is inthe interest of justice to excuse the applicant's failure to timely file.

2.The applicant states:

a.She is requesting assistance for the USAR to honor her special pay incentives onher 2017 signed contract. Her date of appointment into becoming a 66S (Critical Care Nurse) was 31 May 2017. Her promised specialty pay incentive was $25,000.00 yearly, for 3 consecutive years. She has yet to receive such pay. There have been some inconsistences in the process of her transfer from the Area of Concentration (AOC) 70B 
(Health Services Administration) to 66S. She believes these errors ultimately resulted in this injustice of not being paid her incentive. 

b.Three of the Army Core Values are honor, integrity, and respect. She believesthe injustice she received goes against these values. She is attaching pertinent documentation to this case. She placed her trust in individuals who advised her to complete the necessary documents for a smooth transfer. However, she encountered several issues beginning in 2017, while attempting to proceed with those documents. She has been following orders from those deemed experts in their field; but ultimately, due to their administrative errors, she was denied a bonus promised to her even after she had already served the mandated time. 

3.The applicant provides her:

a.Timeline documents

b.DA Form 71, dated 31 May 2017

c.USAREC Form 601-37, 48, dated 31 May 2017.

d.Statement for Commissioning of AMEDD Officer USAR, dated 19 June 2017.

e.Email, dated 20 June 2017, wherein she inquired about completing herDA Form 71 at the AMEDD Recruiting Station. 

f.DA Form 71, dated 1 August 2017.

g.DA Form 5074-1-R, dated 1 August 2017.

h.Email, dated 18 October 2018, wherein she inquired about completing herDA Form 71. 

i.DA Form 71, dated 2 March 2019.

j.Orders C-04-905160, dated 24 April 2019, announcing her appointment andassignment to the 228th Combat Support Hospital (CSH), effective 2 March 2019, as a captain (CPT) in AOC 66S. 

k.Email, dated 18 June 2019, wherein she inquired about redoing her DA Form 71.

l.Email, dated 17 September 2019, wherein the Commander, San Antonio MedicalRecruiting Company, advised the applicant of the following: 

(1)They were tracking the same information she had articulated. Without a newcontract being signed, they were tracking her AOC would not have officially changed from 70B to 66S. While an investigation was conducted and confirmed she qualified for incentives, those incentives only encompassed Retention Bonuses and not Accession Bonuses. Unfortunately, Retention Bonuses were not covered through the contract and must be executed through her Reserve Unit. They understood she had already completed several DA Forms 71 for her new AOC, but those documents were insufficient unless a new contract was signed. 

(2)A new contract was available to officially switch her over to a 66S since shehad "already" been board selected. Without the contract, as stated above, she remained a 70B. She had gone through an immensely challenging and frustrating process. Signing the new contract was entirely up to her and they were there to support her decision in either direction. They did have a point of contact with the Army Medical Department Professional Management Command who would be able to assist with the Retention Bonus if that was something she wished to pursue. 

m.Email correspondence, dated 22 October 2019, wherein the Commander, SanAntonio Medical Recruiting Company, advised the Company Commander, 228th CSH Hospital Adjutant, of the following: 

(1)He wanted to follow-up with regarding the applicant and where they were onthe recruiting side. While the applicant was qualified as a 66S, the Army did not officially recognize her as a 66S. The contract with the Army to recommission her as a 66S was never signed and they understood her reasoning to not sign an updated contract based on issues with the incentives. While a DA Form 71 was completed for her, the contract was never pushed forward and therefore new orders from the U. S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC) placing her within the unit as a 66S were never published. He understood a request was sent forward for her to receive Retention Incentives for the 66S AOC. He sincerely doubted that would be awarded since there were no orders for her reassigning her as a 66S. He sincerely apologized for all the confusion that had caused and for any frustration the applicant had felt. 

(2)It was true, the applicant had a contract, DA Form 71, appointmentmemorandum, and orders as of April 2019. However, at no fault of her own, it came out in an investigation conducted through Recruiting Command that her contract and DA Form 71 were invalid as the date of her signature pre-dated the date of Appointment Offer. For all intents and purposes that meant she signed to be a 66S for the U. S. Army before the Army officially authorized her commission as a 66S. What they were questioning was why HRC cut her orders before a new contract was signed. That was especially concerning since it was HRC and the Health Services Directorate (HSD) who were requesting a new contract and DA Form 71. To their knowledge those orders were not valid because they were based on a contract which the Army could not 










at that moment honor. They had sent up another Request for Information to their Brigade and HSD regarding her orders. Talking with the applicant, they understood, that if the Special Pay incentive was not honored in her contract she would decline. That document would be forwarded to HRC and would rescind her contract, DA Form 71, appointment memorandum, and orders. That would essentially mean she was a 70B. n. Email correspondence, dated 27 January 2020, wherein she advised the HR Management Officer, Reserve Personnel Management Directorate Health Services Division, of the following: As they had discussed over the phone during their conversation, she was declining her bonus for AOC 66S, dated 24 April 2019. She was also attaching the official signed declination form she signed with her recruiting station commander. Her contract dated back to 2017, she would not receive the just back pay for the years of service. She had several administrative issues in her contract that she mentioned to him and for that reason she was declining her commission to 66S. Under remarks, she had included: Original Special Pay Incentive on original Contract from 2017 could not be honored by the Army. Thank you for all of your help through these years as they unsuccessfully tried to fix that problem. o. Email correspondence, dated 4 February 2021, wherein she advised the Director, Health Services, USAREC of the following: (1) At first, she was informed her first contract (signed 2017) was signed prior to receiving her scrolls which made it invalid; therefore, this was the reason why she was not receiving her 66S orders or her bonus ($25,000.00/year for 3 consecutive years). Later, she was advised her contract was actually correct, but the issue was her DA Form 71 being signed too early, so she provided a new DA Form 71 signed on 1 August 2017. However, she remained unable to receive her orders or bonus when she submitted inquires in 2017 and 2018. It was not until 2019 that she once again received updates about her case.  (2) Captain , verified the validity of her original DA Form 71 and informed her that you would honor her original 2017 contract with regards to her bonus so she would receive the $25,000.00 originally offered to her. However, she was informed she could not receive the bonus back pay from 2017, because she did not receive official orders until after her last DA Form 71 was signed on 2 March 2019. Therefore, she would only qualify to begin receiving her bonus beginning in Fiscal Year (FY) 2019. She had been in contact with . (Incentives) regarding her bonus issues as well. He was ready to process her first payment for FY 2019, but she negated that payment in order to avoid having to pay it back. 



(3) That was because the Recruiting Station's Commander, under the assumption she would never receive her bonus and after finding inconsistencies herself in her [applicant] packet, informed her that she would submit a 'declination form' that would negate everything to do with 66S and switch her back to 70B. As of last week, HRC informed her the 'declination form' was not a legal binding document; it was a form she should have never been instructed to sign and she would remain a 66S. She contacts , , once again to update him about that form and requested if he could continue processing her bonus payment for FY 2019; but he required approval pending those circumstances. As she was reviewing her documents again, she had yet to understand why she received her orders in 2017. (4) She had attached some of the pertinent documents in this email and they could also be found in her iPerms. She was hoping he could review them and provide some of his feedback: 

4.Review of the applicant’s service records show:

a.Having prior USAR enlisted service, she was appointed in the USAR, MedicalSpecialty (MS), as a second lieutenant, on 11 December 2011, in AOC 70B. 

b.Orders Number 12-067-00046, dated 7 March 2012, announced her honorabledischarge from the USAR, effective 15 December 2011, to accept a commission. 

c.She entered on active duty training (ADT) on 5 July 2012. She completed BasicOfficer Leader Course and was awarded AOC 70B. She was honorably released from ADT on 12 September 2012 and was transferred to a Reserve unit. Her DD Form 214 shows she completed 2 months and 8 days of net active service this period. 

d.On 31 May 2017, she signed a USAREC Form 601-37,48, wherein sheacknowledged the Special Pay – 3-year incentive was available to applicants in specified (Wartime Critical Shortage List) AOCs. 

e.On 19 June 2017, she signed a Statement for Commissioning of AMEDD OfficerUSAR, wherein she acknowledged the following: 

(1)I am commissioning for the Army Nurse Corps and AOC 66S-Critical CareNursing with the following incentives: Special Pay Entitlements. I understand that I have applied and have been selected for the following incentives: Special Pay. I hereby apply for participation in the Selected Reserve (SELRES) Special Pay Program in the SELRES of the Army. I acknowledge the following, I meet the following eligibility criteria: 

(2)I am fully qualified and applying for a commission and appointment,designation, or assignment as an officer in the SELRES of the Army in a specialty listed on the critical wartime shortage list for which the Special Pay Program is approved. 

(3)I agree that the SELRES Special Pay Program shall apply to me, as follows:

(4)I shall be entitled during the period of my agreement to an annual specialpay, payable per year for a maximum of 3 years, as determined by my specialty, for $25,000.00. I understand that this special pay shall be paid upon receiving assignment orders (anniversary date) as specified below.  

(5)I shall be required to perform satisfactorily in the SELRES, in accordancewith AR 135-91. 

(6)I shall incur an Army SELRES obligation of 3 years. My obligation shall beginimmediately in the Reserve in the following specialty, 66S-Critical Care Nursing. 

(7)If I terminate service in the SELRES before the end of the period for whichpayment was made, I shall refund the full amount of the payment made for the period on which the payment was based. 

f.In a Recommendation for Reserve Appointment memorandum, dated 31 July2017, Headquarters, U. S. Army Recruiting Command, Fort Knox, KY, advised HRC of the applicant’s recommendation for appointment in the USAR, in AOC 66S. The memorandum contains the entry:  Incentive Applied for Bonus. 

g.Her DA Form 5074-1, dated 1 August 2017, shows she was awarded 2 years,5 months, and 29 days of total prior service credit for appointment in the rank of first lieutenant (1LT). 

h.An Appointment Memorandum, dated 3 August 2017, shows she was appointedin the USAR, Army Nurse Corps, as a captain (CPT), in AOC 66S, with an effective date of 2 March 2019, with 2 years, 5 months, and 29 days of years of service in an active status. 

i.On 2 March 2019, she signed a DA Form 71 (Oath of Office – Military Personnel).

j.A Letter of Acceptance Memorandum For Record, dated 15 March 2019, statedshe had been accepted for a position in duty AOC 66S. 

k.Orders Number 20-140-00004, published by Headquarters, USAR Command,Fort Bragg, NC on 19 May 2020, announced her honorable discharge from the USAR, in the rank of CPT, under the provisions of Army Regulation 135-175 (Army National 
Guard and Reserve – Separation of Officers), by reason of Unqualified Resignation, effective 19 June 2020. 

l.Her record is void of any indication of any Special Pay agreements submittedduring her period of service. 

5.By AR 135-175, Reserve officers can submit a request for an unqualified resignation.

6.By Title 37, U. S. Code, section 335(b), an officer in a regular component may bepaid an incentive for serving on active duty in a designated Health Profession specialtyor skill. To receive a bonus under this section, an officer determined to be eligible for thebonus shall enter into a written agreement with the Secretary concerned that specifiesthe terms and authorizes the payment of the incentive.

7.AR 15-185 (ABCMR), applicants do not have a right to a hearing before the ABCMR.The Director or the ABCMR may grant a formal hearing whenever justice requires.

BOARD DISCUSSION: 

1.The applicant's request for a personal appearance hearing was carefully considered.In this case, the evidence of record was sufficient to render a fair and equitabledecision.  As a result, a personal appearance hearing is not necessary to serve theinterest of equity and justice in this case.

2.After reviewing the application, all supporting documents, and the evidence foundwithin the military record, the Board found that relief was not warranted. The applicant’scontentions, the military record, and regulatory guidance were carefully considered.Based upon a preponderance of the evidence, the Board determined there is insufficientevidence that shows the applicant had a valid contract within her AOC, and her recordis void an approved bonus contract after the contested period.

BOARD VOTE: 

Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 
:     :     :      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
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.Title 10, United States Code (USC), section 1552(b), provides that applications forcorrection of military records must be filed within 3 years after discovery of the allegederror or injustice. This provision of law also allows the Army Board for Correction ofMilitary Records (ABCMR) to excuse an applicant's failure to timely file within the 3-yearstatute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to doso.

2.Title 37, USC, section 335(b), states the Secretary concerned may pay incentive payunder this section to an officer in a regular or reserve component of a uniformed servicewho is entitled to basic pay under this title or compensation under section 206 of thistitle; and is serving on active duty or in an active status in a designated healthprofession specialty or skill.  To receive a bonus under this section, an officerdetermined to be eligible for the bonus shall enter into a written agreement with theSecretary concerned that specifies:

•the amount of the bonus

•the method of payment of the bonus

•the period of obligated service

•whether the service will be performed on active duty or in an active status in areserve component; and

•the type or conditions of the service



3.  Army Regulation (AR) 135-175 (Army National Guard and Reserve – Separation of Officers), prescribes the policies, criteria, and procedures governing the separation of Reserve officers of the Army. Paragraph 6-8 (General) of the regulation provides for means and procedures governing the submission of unqualified resignations as Reserve officers of the Army and the conditions under which such resignations may be accepted. 
 
4.  AR 15-185 (ABCMR) prescribes the policies and procedures for correction of military records by the Secretary of the Army, acting through the ABCMR. The ABCMR begins its consideration of each case with the presumption of administrative regularity, which is that what the Army did was correct. 
 
 a.  The ABCMR is not an investigative body and decides cases based on the evidence that is presented in the military records provided and the independent evidence submitted with the application. The applicant has the burden of proving an error or injustice by a preponderance of the evidence. 
 
 b.  The ABCMR may, in its discretion, hold a hearing or request additional evidence or opinions. Additionally, it states in paragraph 2-11 that applicants do not have a right to a hearing before the ABCMR. The Director or the ABCMR may grant a formal hearing whenever justice requires. 
 
//NOTHING FOLLOWS//