DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS 701 S. COURTHOUSE ROAD, SUITE 1001 ARLINGTON, VA 22204-2490 Docket No. 10309-19 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. A three-member panel of the Board for Correction of Naval Records, sitting in executive session, considered your application on 23 January 2019. 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 you entered active duty with the Marine Corps in January 1998. On 26 October 2012, a medical board referred you to the Physical Evaluation Board (PEB) for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Anxiety Disorder, and Congenital Factor 7 Disorder. The PEB found you unfit for continued naval service on 20 February 2013 for moderate anxiety disorder and Congenital Factor 7 Disorder. You were assigned disability ratings of 50% and 0%, respectively, and placed on the Temporary Disability Retirement List (TDRL). Your PTSD was determined to be a related disability to your anxiety disorder. In December 2014, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) rated your anxiety disorder at 50%. The VA reexamined you in 2016 and continued your 50% rating for anxiety disorder. In July 2019, you underwent a TDRL periodic examination for your two unfitting conditions. In both examinations, you were noted to be working at as a contractor and functioning well enough to maintain steady employment. Based on these periodic examinations, the PEB found you unfit for continued naval service for moderate anxiety disorder and Congenital Factor 7 Disorder. However, your anxiety disorder rating was lowered to 10% resulting in a recommendation for your discharge with severance pay. Once your reconsideration was denied by the PEB, you requested a formal hearing that was conducted on 8 March 2017. The formal hearing affirmed the earlier PEB decision to find you unfit for continued naval service for your moderate anxiety disorder with a 10% rating. After you filed a Petition for Relief with Director, Secretary of the Navy Council of Review Boards (CORB), it was denied on 1 June 2017 based on a finding that you did not meet the criteria for a 30% rating under the VASRD for anxiety disorder. The Board carefully considered your arguments that you deserve to be placed on the disability retirement list with at least a 30% rating. You provided new medical evidence to be considered in addition to your PEB record. Unfortunately, the Board disagreed with your rationale for relief. In making their findings, the Board substantially concurred with the findings and rationale utilized by the PEB formal hearing and Director CORB in their decisions to assign you a 10% rating for your moderate anxiety disorder. The Board considered the requirements for a specific rating under VASRD Code 9413 contained in Title 38 Code of Federal Regulations section 4.130 and applied it to the facts of your case as of 2017. The Board determined that your impairments were more aligned with a 10% rating than a 30% rating based on your ability to obtain and maintain employment with minor decreases in work efficiency and ability to perform occupational tasks during periods of significant stress. The Board noted that prior to moving to to commence a job as a contractor, you obtained a graduate degree in 2015, teach at a community college, and eventually become program director for the Criminal Justice section. You were able to accomplish these high functioning tasks despite receiving mental health treatment for PTSD and Unspecified Depressive Disorder. Subsequently, you moved the and commenced working as an instructor for Marine Corps Police Department before transitioning to become a regional exercise planner for the Marine Corps. All the while, you reported symptoms that occasionally impacted your ability to perform your duties due to stress and other unexpected events. When analyzing your job performance with the rating requirements for VASRD 9413, the Board concluded the preponderance of the evidence does not support a 30% rating. What the Board concluded was that your symptoms may have decreased your work efficiency but did not create periods of inability to perform occupational tasks. The Board felt the post-discharge episodes your mental health provider described in her August 2019 report did not support a finding that you were unable to perform occupational tasks except in isolated events. The Board found that the episodes appear to be of the nature that impact your ability to perform your duties effectively without preventing you from performing them. In other words, while there is one episode which led you to call in sick from work, the Board found your symptoms, more likely than not, generally decreased your work efficiency rather than prevented you from working all together. Therefore, they agreed with the assessments of the PEB and Director CORB that you do not meet the criteria for a 30% rating for moderate anxiety disorder since there were not intermittent periods when you were unable to work due to your mental health symptoms. Additionally, the Board noted that your symptoms have generally worsened since your discharge from the Marine Corps but concluded that your assigned disability rating of 10% for your moderate anxiety disorder was supported by the evidence as of 2017. 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, 1/27/2020