CRSC Denial asking for guidance

[ksteele1985]

My husband applied for CRSC and was denied.

During his PEB they never acknowledge his PTSD being combat related, his lawyer had him sign the findings and said was he would take care of the combat code but did not do this prior to him being medically retired.



After about a year he applied for CRSC and was denied.

He just went back to the VA for an increase and he was granted it he went from 50% to 70% and on his disabilities for his PTSD it now states Combat.

Rated Disabilities
Disability Rating Decision:
post traumatic stress disorder and alcohol use disorder (referred as PTSD) (claimed as PTSD; depression; and anxiety) 70% Service Connected Related To PTSD - Combat


His Denial letter state this:







Should he file for an appeal for his PEB records or should we file for a reconsideration? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[gsfowler]

Read section B, in particular the "causal relationship" between the particular stressor that is the trigger for your husbands PTSD.

For the purpose of CRSC, the causal relationship should read something like this "while deployed to FOB mickey mouse, I was subjected to a mortar rocket which exploded in the dining facility. The mortar killed four of my fellow service members in which I witnessed. Additionally I suffered wounds from shrapnel which are a daily reminder of the incident. I suffer PTSD from the trauma. This is supported by my medical records dated XX/XX/XXXX with Dr. XXXX at the military treatment facility. I also have a statement from my platoon sergeant, platoon leader and my spouse who were both direct and indirect witnesses to the incident."

See what I did there? The statement provides a direct, causal relationship to one of the four possible reasons for combat related special compensation.

CRSC requires that disabilities that may be considered combat related include injuries incurred as a direct result of:

• Armed Conflict
• Hazardous Duty
• An Instrumentality of War
• Simulated War

For the purpose of CRSC, PTSD will usually fall under one (or more) of the situations listed above. The statement that I wrote will cover both armed conflict and an instrumentality of war, since mortar rockets are unique to combat and have no useful purpose outside of war.

The condition does not have to be listed by the PEB as combat related, as each branch of service will still make a determination after the fact (the the CRSC determining office) whether or not the condition qualifies.

You cannot just make up the statement either, it must be supported by evidence which can come from medical records, operation orders, news reports, personal diaries, buddy statements etc.

 

[eps17]

Would mortars really fly for instrumentality of war for PTSD?

 

[gsfowler]

Would mortars really fly for instrumentality of war for PTSD?

Most certainly, if they detonated in your AO and the trauma from the mortar attack was your trigger for PTSD.

 

[eps17]

I even submitted a letter from my commander during the deployment attesting to this and there is ample in theater psych treatment for sleep, anxiety, irritability along with performance reports and extensive records from the military AND the VA for the last 10 years documenting this. Yet, the Air Force denied. Its almost a joke.

I think they want to see an Air Force Combat Action Medal which you can pretty much only get awarded if you return fire. Hard to shoot at people launching mortars and rockets from Sadr City on the other side of the Tigris river you can't see. 33 people were killed in my AOR as a result during my deployment. I'm searching for an attorney now to take a niche CRSC case; which I haven't been able to find a single one as its a pretty objective application process.

 

[Camp P Marine]

Would you recommend highlighting the medical records?

Especially statements previously ignored by the CRSC board...."endorses symptoms of combat-related PTSD in all categories"

 

[chaplaincharlie]

Medical records are iffy. Often the doc is reporting in part what the patient reported to him/her. So those records carry less weight.

 

[eps17]

I would normally agree; but these medical records were from a Combat Support Hospital in Baghdad, Iraq and that facility took just as much indirect fire as everywhere else. I want to say, without referencing, that it wasn't written "patient stated or patient related" but more or less; "due to recent rocket and mortar attacks" x, y, and z. I still thought the letter from my Lt Col. commander who signed and put his phone number on it would have been more than enough to substantiate the combat zone and everything that happened.

 

[eps17]

In other news I was just awarded the Air Force Combat Action Badge today ten years later.

 

[Warrior644]

In other news I was just awarded the Air Force Combat Action Badge today ten years later.

Wow, indeed and congratulations; better later than never! Good deal for sure! Take care!

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

Best Wishes!