AF MEB going on almost 2 years and I'm lost now

BrokeTACP

BrokeTACP

PEB Forum Regular Member
Registered Member
i am Air Force and have been undergoing an MEB for almost 2 years, been code 37 since July 2015. I started at Shaw AFB and had doctors tell me wrong information, bust every deadline and have to wait on referrals for multiple doctors where some were lost and took months. I am stationed at fort Stewart and my servicing base was Shaw but got switched to moody AFB in the middle of my package being completed. Almost a year after being coded, my package was done and the chief medical officer at the base directed the peblo to transfer my stuff to moody for them to send off since I was the last person from my unit to be there. Moody received my package and I got my unfit/ full board decision fairly quick. After that I was told 60-90 days for my stuff to be done at afpc. About 60 days into waiting I called my peblo for a status update. Moody's office is the worst about not answering phones and returning email so when I finally got ahold of them, I was told they were waiting on one more doctor at the base to go over my stuff, so the peblo never told me what was going on and they decided to redo my package before sending it up. When they finally sent it up, afpc told them I needed a new commanders letter because it had taken so long. That was December last year.

Now, I just got the email saying my package has been sent to the VA. From what I've read on here that should be extremely quick considering how long everything else has taken me. I feel clueless about what's going on and what I need to be doing besides outprocessing stuff for my separation. My peblo is the worst and hasn't told me jack except to wait. During this time I received a new MRI on my knee which is one of my main meb issues along with my back and ptsd, and found a tear in my meniscus.

Now for my questions.
If I get 30% from the Air Force should I still appeal and get my tear added? I know I can ad to the va through the rep/clinic in my town so I'm not worried about them

Being in 10 years and having a wife and child, is it better for me to take an Air Force retirement to keep insurance for my family? A civilian at my shop just told me that if I take va retirement we don't keep tricare and I only keep health coverage from lovely va.

To apply for crsc pay, do I do that through my peblo or submit the package on my own?

Thank you for any help and any additional advice you might have
 
BrokeTACP said:
t if I take va retirement we don't keep tricare and I only keep health coverage from lovely va.
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Incorrect.
1) There is no VA retirement. VA comp is more closely analogous to disability insurance (enhanced SSDI, kinda) than retirement.
2) Retirement means you can get tricare, but it's not free, so you'll have the option of bypassing it for VA if you want. VA healthcare is free if you are at 50%+ VA rating. Tricare is more for the family than you really.
3) The more health insurance the better IMO. You could use both. I have tricare for the family. I also have a PCM with tricare because certain meds the VA is stingy about. I also have a VA PCM because they order more tests and I want the VA to have easy access to my med records. VA has been far more willing to run blood work, xrays, and refer to specialists than the MTF.
4) Monthly checks and insurance are separate issues. I receive VA comp at 100% rather than the retirement money, because it's more. Then use CRSC to restore the retirement money. Very few turn down VA comp, generally only for weird family law issues.

BrokeTACP said:
To apply for crsc pay, do I do that through my peblo or submit the package on my own?
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CRSC cannot be submitted until after retirement, at which point you won't have a peblo. Submit on your own. The retirement services office helped put my package together, but they only provided an envelope and typing. Well, they did give me info. Some of which was wrong, such as i can only apply for unfit conditions (CRSC was approved for 3 conditions, none of which were unfit, but denied for the unfit condition). Submit on you own is my recommendation for sure.

BrokeTACP said:
If I get 30% from the Air Force should I still appeal and get my tear added?
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Make sure you take the fight to the right people. PDRL vs TDRL or fit condition vs unfit condition means appeal (FPEB). If the percentage is wrong (30% vs 40%) that is likely a fight with the VA through a reconsideration, since the knee is already a part of the MEB package.

This is a complex question that requires viewing into the future to accurately assess. Fair is fair, and nothing is wrong with making sure everything is on the up and up. Many times it can be better to take the 30% and run, since appeals or reconsideration can in theory cause things to drop instead of raise. I'd, at a minimum, run it by a MEB lawyer.

However, nobody can foresee how things might change down the road.

Consider this: In 1999 there was no difference between retirement and severance except the lump sum and insurance. Someone who just said screw it and left with a 20% wasn't really much worse off in the big picture. I read a BCMR case of a guy who accepted his discharge at 19 years 8 months because it didn't matter too much anyway. When CRDP was implemented (2004? around there) he suddenly was out around $2k a month because of those 4 months he missed out on. BCMR wasn't about to give him credit for those 4 months so he could retire, afterall, he signed all those papers saying there was no problem with what happened. It can be really hard to preserve these issues to fight out later if things change.

I'd probably take the 30% and deal with the VA afterwords about any issues, but it can be really hard to say that is the correct route to take. Too many variables.
 
You can only apply for CRSC after you are retired. You apply through AFPC.
 
chaplaincharlie said:
You can only apply for CRSC after you are retired. You apply through AFPC.
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That is very helpful. Thank you very much. When you talk about having a pcm with tricare and mtf, I assume you live close to a base and use their facilities? I've kept my family on standard and that's what I'm hoping to do to forgo having to do referrals plus I won't be anywhere near an mtf. I'll have to get my knee fixed when I'm out and I really want to avoid having procedures with the va. Is the cost of tricare similar to what it is being active duty?
 
You get Tricare standard automatically. Standard involves a deductible and a co-pay.
 
What is CRSC pay? And to chime in-I would take the 30 and run since you'll have Tricare at that point anyways. You can get higher via the VA later and would end up making more anyways since the VA pay isn't taxable I think.
 
mr pig said:
What is CRSC pay? And to chime in-I would take the 30 and run since you'll have Tricare at that point anyways. You can get higher via the VA later and would end up making more anyways since the VA pay isn't taxable I think.
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Crsc is combat related special compensation. Any disability that is directly combat related. You need supporting evidence that whatever a claim for it is came from direct combat involvement. I have a combat action medal and a couple other awards that I'll be submitting with mine. The Air Force seems to be the worst about not giving it out probably because 1% of it if that actually see combat but what I've gathered from here is if you have an afcam or Purple Heart that's like the key to getting it
 
chaplaincharlie said:
You get Tricare standard automatically. Standard involves a deductible and a co-pay.
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I'm tracking. My wife has it and even though prescriptions can be a royal pain to get most of the time, at least she gets to pick her doctors and not have to get referrals. The retired guy I work with said he does everything with tricare and only does his mandatory exams at the va which is what I'd like to do. I have to get my knee fixed after I get out so I might try look into social security disability through that since I won't be able to work but I've heard it's a pain in the ass
 
For prescriptions get set up with Express Scripts.

Its a giant pain in the ass to get set-up, but its so damn useful get your meds in 90 day supplies and everything turns highly automated.
 
I agree, Express Scripts is awesome for meds you take on an ongoing basis. Many are at no cost to you. Some have a copay. For urgent meds you can get them at a number of pharmacies that take Tricare, a copay applies.
 
BrokeTACP said:
I finally got my ratings. 40% af and I 100% va
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Indeed, congratulations on receipt of your IPEB findings! :D Enjoy and take care! :cool:

Thus, I quite often comment that "possessing well-informed knowledge is truly a powerful equalizer!"

Best Wishes!
 
Jane maroon said:
Congrats! I'm at Moody going through my MEB as well.
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You're lucky that you are stationed there so you can drop by people's offices. I'm stationed at fort Stewart down by savannah and the peblos are the worst about answering phones and emails. I hope yours goes better and smoother than mine did
 
Congratulations on receiving your ratings.
 
BrokeTACP said:
I finally got my ratings. 40% af and I 100% va
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Do you happen to have your time line from when things got started at Ft. Stewart? I am at Hunter, which is part of Ft. Stewart. I received my Unfit memo on the 12th of April, and still haven't received my VA ratings yet.....just curious about how long it took you to receive yours.

-Steve
 
ArmyCPT81 said:
Do you happen to have your time line from when things got started at Ft. Stewart? I am at Hunter, which is part of Ft. Stewart. I received my Unfit memo on the 12th of April, and still haven't received my VA ratings yet.....just curious about how long it took you to receive yours.

-Steve
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Oh man. I'm Air Force stationed at Stewart so I had to go from my pcm to off base doctors then to Air Force doctors plus I did 7 months of treatment before my meb was initiated. The Air Force doctors I see were the ones who initiated my meb. Some of the soldiers I've knownto go through MBA here have been anywhere from 6 months to a year tops. Have you done your va appointments yet or is your unfit memo just what your pcm has written up for you so far? My meb was initiated July 2015 and almost 23 months later I finally got my ratings. you should be out by the end of the year I would think since you've already been labeled unfit
 
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