CRSC CODES

And here is a twist. The 2008 NDAA provided enhanced disability separation pay for those who are founfd unfit and separated with ratings of less than 30%. Here Congress gives enhanced benefits for those whose unfitting disabilities incurred in a combat zone. It does not have to be combat related, it just has to have incurred in an area designated as a combat zone (or incurred as part of a combat operation). Combat zone, combat operation and Combat related all mean different things.

So a service member who trips over his own feet walking out of the Green Zone dining hall gets enhanced separation pay but a service member with the same disability incurred during a states side night time helicopter special ops training mission will not.

This is because the staffers in Congress don't understand the differences in these terms when they accept draft legislation or comments from DoD.


Mike
 
RikersIsland,

I understand the sentiment of looking out for the non-combat arms folks. And it is actually helpful to me to explain my thoughts on these things. So, thank you for the question.
 
So does it really matter where a vetern get hurts, he is hurt and the military told him they woudl take care of him for sigining up and his willingness to put his life on the line. So if he got hurt in the LOD he should be taken care of. If he gets put out before he gets 20 years it should not matter as he was still in and planing to get his 20. So all these in and outs of the law need to go away and he should get his disability and his VA benifis, I mean a past congressman in jail still gets his benifits. Sorry for ranting.
 
UTBAS,

A combat related determination by your PEB will only aid your CRSC decision, not guarantee it. When you file for CRSC, they will make an independent combat related determination. Remember, there are plenty of guys who have combat related disabilities who were not medically separated and have combat related determinations by the VA whi were turned down for CRSC by their Service.

Mike
 
You can appeal the PEB's combat related determinatioin.

With or without the PEB stating it is combat related, you can file for CRSC once you have it rated and compensated by the VA.

The CRSC board will make a determination if it is combat related independent of what the PEB and the VA have said although they will take into consideration what they have said.

You can appeal the CRSC combat related determination.

Mike
 
Mike thanks for your help i think i have all the information i need to make my decision. Now lets hope they come back with the right numbers in the first place my biggest hopes are that they will give me the right numbers TODAY and i will be on my way back to my family. keep your fingers crossed everyone.
 
The CRSC calculation is the biggest bunch of bureaucratic bullshit I have ever seen. The spirit of the law is to concurrently allow retirees to collect their meager retirement and their meager disability compensation for their combat related injuries so that they can live on today's economy. What DoD has done with this law is a joke!! Once again, a twenty year pogue gets much more consideration than a combat veteran who was forced out because of combat related injuries. There should be no "time in service" offset, the formula should be straight-up and clear..medical retirement (based on current formula) + VA disability payment for combat related injuries = monthly compensation. How do these politicians live with themselves? 1 Trillion dollars to prop up the fatcats in the banking industry who continue to walk away from their jobs with millions in golden parachutes. Combat veterans continue to get thrown crumbs from the table. The lesson is clear: screw your country = get rich , serve your country = get screwed!!!!!!!!!!!
 
Orion69,

While I agree in part with your sentiments concerning the benefit of CRSC (when stacked against other benefits...such as CRDP) you should keep in mind that there are many servicemembers who served in combat-arms/combat-related jobs and served their 20. There are also many servicemembers who may not retire as an infantryman or carry a combat arms MOS/AFSC/Rate, but did so for a large part of their career before injuries/promotions/other issues forced them to change their occupation within the military. The general 'lesson learned' here is that Veterans and active/reserve component servicemembers cannot point fingers at each other when discussing these issues. The Delta Force Soldier who has fought in every major engagement since the First Gulf War is entitled to no more benefits in the end than the Acquisitions NCO who never left Washington D.C. Bickering among ourselves does nothing to advance our cause for better benefits and compensation.
 
Ma Parker. I was on an ARTEP training exercise back in 1982. I was working in Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD). We left our camp and went out to locate a possible chemical training site for the next day. In the process, we had a jeep roll over accident. I was retired medical from the Army at 60% in 1984. DA Form 199 in block 10C states "did result from a combat related injury as defined in 26 USC 104". It also indicates in block 8, in time of war, or national emergency. And- result of performing duty.

Since that time I have worked for the Army as a civilian. I got ready to retire and needed the 5.5 years of service. I paid the deposit. They sent a note back saying they "did not have documentation proving retired pay was on account of a service connected disability incurrened in combat or caused by an instrumentality of war and incurred in the line of duty during a period of war." They said, I would have to give up retirement check and process through the VA for the disability. Needless to say, processing through the VA is not a desired option. I would rather just keep my retirement check, and retire from Civilian Army.

Is the DA 199 the documentation they are looking for? Will they also need something stating we were on a ARTEP when the accident occurred. (medical records)

Can you help me?

Mike[/quote]If during an FTX, you are charging up a hill in simulated combat and hurt your foot, then it is combat related. If during an FTX, you hurt your foot while performing maintenance on your vehicle, it may not be considered combat related.
 
I am currently being separated for injuries to both knees directly related to my Airborne training. yet the VA has said it isnt combat related. reading the comments above and doing my own research, i qualify. How can i get this changed?
 
If your question is in relation to qualifying for crsc, the branch of service will make the determination on whether your separation injuries meet the crsc criteria. The relationship of your injury in regards to how it qualifies for crsc may go something like this; Derek was a 11x who served in worldwide rapid deployable by land sea and air airborne infantry unit who sustained multiple injuries to his knees from years of repeated impact from landings while conducting combat readiness mass exiting airborne operations in conus or oconus training missions. The VA cannot make this determination for you when it comes to crsc but rather you could use VA documents as support for your case but it's not necessary. There was a good post a week or so ago about the importance of drawing a direct relation to how your injuries were caused and how they relate to combat. The article covered an individual who was struck by shrapnel in a dfac in Iraq when a mortar shell impacted while he was dining. The author of that post really hit it center mass with a dime sized shot group when he explained the importance of direct relationship to combat or in your case mission training or rehearsal for future combat operations. The author of the post went on to state that you cannot merely say what happened but also provide documented proof of how your injury qualifies for crsc. A copy of your dd214 stating your qualifications such as parachutist badge or air assault badge and Combat MOS designator. An NCOER that states the kind of unit you served in and the expectation of your unit to be world wide rapid deployable by land sea and air. The medical docs that draw a direct relationship to airborne training operations and your injuries. The only thing you need from the VA when it comes to crsc is a rating of 10% or more for the condition you are claiming for crsc. Someone may jump in with more to add but remember, there are lawyers who specialize in things like writing crsc justifications and the military understands clearly when justifications are written based off of the letter of the law and us codes
 
I suspect there was a recent "like" response to this thread that caused it to be featured even though the last post appears to be from ~nine months ago.

This is an interesting thread to me for several reasons, including my entire Army career was in combat service support.

With regard to injuries that occurred during an FTX, there are (and were) several examples of when and how they might be considered combat related. Some of the earlier remarks seemed to suggest that an "admin" soldier would likely be a visitor to a FTX. I was on many a FTX where everyone in the field for that exercise was admin. One of my positions during my 20+ year career was a first sergeant in a combat service support unit that went on FTXs multiple times each year. Most my career was in Army divisions such as the 24th ID and 3rd ID.

Many of us spent time in places such as Vietnam. However, as pointed out, just being in a combat zone or on a FTX would not necessarily indicate that all injuries would be considered combat related.

In closing, I will add that I respect all who served honorably and admire those whose duties were more dangerous and challenging than the responsibilities I had.
 
Is there some connection between the tinnitus and the FTX? My gut reaction is no, but if during the FTX, for example, an artillery simulator went of near your ear and this caused the injury, then yes. But if it was something that just coincidentally developed during the FTX, then no.
Got Jsesus?
 
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