Will I get a DD214 if medically retired (reserves)

I am being medically retired from the reserves 17 Oct 14. I was previous active duty (07-11). Anywho, I received my orders and I am trying to enroll in DEERS. They asked for my DD214 but I do not have one for this discharge yet or know if I will even get one. Does anyone know or been through this process. I also heard I will get a flag and certificate in the mail, but not sure how long that takes.


THX!
 
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mrsacmann said:
I am being medically retired from the reserves 17 Oct 14. I was previous active duty (07-11). Anywho, I received my orders and I am trying to enroll in DEERS. They asked for my DD214 but I do not have one for this discharge yet or know if I will even get one. Does anyone know or been through this process. I also heard I will get a flag and certificate in the mail, but not sure how long that takes.


THX!
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Are you currently on AD or retiring as a traditional reservist?
 
This is what happened for me… had to go to a retirement services office on post. Was given my flag and certificate at that office.. filled out more paperwork for DFAS… was given my certified retirement orders and sent to the ID branch for DEERS update and retired ID. Got it all done in about two hours at JBMDL, NJ. Oh and I forgot to add, no DD214 just retirement orders.
 
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You should be able to submit the orders for a DD215 to adjust your DD214 from the last period of service to show medical retirement. Pretty sure what they are doing is correcting your last period of service by giving you an active duty retirement. In a reserve status you aren't eligible for an active duty retirement, but since your injuries were active duty, its that active duty time period that got the incorrect discharge. Its the messed up DD214 that is the reason why reservists are not supposed to be discharged until medical processing is done.
 
scoutCC said:
You should be able to submit the orders for a DD215 to adjust your DD214 from the last period of service to show medical retirement. Pretty sure what they are doing is correcting your last period of service by giving you an active duty retirement. In a reserve status you aren't eligible for an active duty retirement, but since your injuries were active duty, its that active duty time period that got the incorrect discharge. Its the messed up DD214 that is the reason why reservists are not supposed to be discharged until medical processing is done.
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That's interesting, I have never had a problem with a "final" DD214 and if there is a way to get one I would love to know the process.
 
Shane said:
This is what happened for me… had to go to a retirement services office on post. Was given my flag and certificate at that office.. filled out more paperwork for DFAS… was given my certified retirement orders and sent to the ID branch for DEERS update and retired ID. Got it all done in about two hours at JBMDL, NJ. Oh and I forgot to add, no DD214 just retirement orders.
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Thanks for your response. I have heard from a few people that this is what happens. Minus receiving the flag and certificate. I am going through an Active duty base. Its good becasue the people are here, but I dont' think no one really knows what to do with a regular dilling reservist thats not activated.
 
Shane said:
This is what happened for me… had to go to a retirement services office on post. Was given my flag and certificate at that office.. filled out more paperwork for DFAS… was given my certified retirement orders and sent to the ID branch for DEERS update and retired ID. Got it all done in about two hours at JBMDL, NJ. Oh and I forgot to add, no DD214 just retirement orders.
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Shane, how was your experience getting an ID and enrolling in Tricare? I have called the 1800 number for DEERS and local number, and Tricare and they insist on my DD214. My family is already listed but we dont have any coverage as of yet.
 
mrsacmann said:
Shane, how was your experience getting an ID and enrolling in Tricare? I have called the 1800 number for DEERS and local number, and Tricare and they insist on my DD214. My family is already listed but we dont have any coverage as of yet.
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easy it was all done on the day I went to the retirement office, and I went a week before my retirement started. I got the Tricare ID cards for my kids online at milconnect. My daughter got a ID card at another base near her collage. So no problems if done in person with orders in hand.
 
scoutCC said:
You should be able to submit the orders for a DD215 to adjust your DD214 from the last period of service to show medical retirement. Pretty sure what they are doing is correcting your last period of service by giving you an active duty retirement. In a reserve status you aren't eligible for an active duty retirement, but since your injuries were active duty, its that active duty time period that got the incorrect discharge. Its the messed up DD214 that is the reason why reservists are not supposed to be discharged until medical processing is done.
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They won't issue a DD Form 215 to change a REFRAD to a medical retirement. You realize that if they did they would have to recoup any money paid for drills or active duty after the last period of active duty for which he was issued a DD Form 214? One of the things we HAD to consider when writing cases for the ABCMR was the effects of a proposed correction. For example, one woman wanted us to correct her records to show she was placed in the Retired Reserve and not given severance pay for physical unfitness. I called her up and informed her that if I did that they would recoup her severance pay and that she was not eligible for retired pay at age 60 if we made that correction. She got pretty nasty with me and told me to board her for what she requested. So I recommended approval of her request and made an MFR of my phone call. About two months later the DASA (Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army) came to me and said this woman called him in tears. DFAS was collecting the entire amount and had threatened to garnish wages if the debt wasn't paid. It was over $80,000 of debt . . . The DASA said he knew I warned her but asked if I would consider changing the records again to negate the correction. I changed her records once again . . .
 
Why would they have to recoup money? Even in the case of a fradulent enlistment, which this surely isn't, they don't recoup money. You served the time, they just fix it with a discharge or UCMJ or court martial but don't go after the pay for the time you served. This would at best be a defective enlistment for the time after a medical discharge. Even if they did trigger a DFAS review, the retirement pay since the discharge would offset any drill pay they took, which again, I don't see why they would or could.

A disability discharge from the reserves does not come with retirement or separation pay, it is a convenience of the government discharge. It is only a disability discharge from active duty that that comes with those conditions, so it must be associated with the last period of active service. I am not a pro on reservists, but do they get back pay on their retirement? I would think they should. I just don't see where the authority exists for an active duty injury occurred in 2008, SM discharged from active in 2009 and then to get a medical retirement starting in 2014, it would have to be a change to the discharge in 2009 unless they recalled them to active duty to process the MEB/PEB and discharged them then, on a new DD214.
 
If someone collected pay after they are discharged or retired, the military MUST collect the pay as an operation of law. The person had no active military status after discharge.

A discharge/retirement for physical unfitness is the same whether it is given while on active duty or as a drilling reservist.

Only the ABCMR can order a REFRAD from active duty be corrected to a discharge/retirement for physical unfitness. The ABCMR would only do so if it could be shown that the physical disability was so severe at the time of REFRAD that it was clearly inappropriate.

I repeat: You are only given a DD Form 214 when you are released from active duty. Never from any reserve component if not serving on active duty at the time. And no, they will not bring someone back on active duty just so they can issue him/her a DD Form 214.
 
Ed Mercanti said:
A discharge/retirement for physical unfitness is the same whether it is given while on active duty or as a drilling reservist.
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AR 635-200 1-32 and AR 135-178 are considerably different. See, AR 635-200 para 1-32 and AR 135-178 para 1-8. A reservist that gets diagnosed with an unfitting condition gets a chapter 6, convenience of the government discharge. That is why the LOD is so important, it brings them into the realm of 635-200. There is no discharge authority, while in a reserve status and subject to AR 135-178, for a disability retirement. See 10 USC 1201 and 10 USC 1204.

Ed Mercanti said:
If someone collected pay after they are discharged or retired, the military MUST collect the pay as an operation of law. The person had no active military status after discharge.
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If they collected active duty pay after discharge, I agree that would be clear. However, if they changed their status, it would have been the government's booboo, a defective enlistment back into the reserve, and hence no pay should be collected. Changing the nature of the discharge doesn't make the reserve time impossible, just invalid, and a government booboo. If the injury occured in an activated period in 07, then they were activated again in 09, again, government booboo, and the discharge should be effective on the end of the 09 period.

Ed Mercanti said:
Only the ABCMR can order a REFRAD from active duty be corrected to a discharge/retirement for physical unfitness. The ABCMR would only do so if it could be shown that the physical disability was so severe at the time of REFRAD that it was clearly inappropriate.
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I agree the DD214 would probably need to be corrected by the ABCMR, but the service secretary has the authority to direct other means to correct the discharge being incorrect. Ultimately, its that active duty discharge that is being declared FUBAR by the PEB, the REFRAD was incorrect and they should have been given disability retirement at the time the DD214 was cut. The LOD says it was active duty time the injury was incurred and you cannot be removed from active duty status without the correct discharge, which failed to happen.

Ed Mercanti said:
I repeat: You are only given a DD Form 214 when you are released from active duty. Never from any reserve component if not serving on active duty at the time. And no, they will not bring someone back on active duty just so they can issue him/her a DD Form 214.
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DD214 is for an active duty period. That is its definition. A medical discharge w/ retirement pay or separation pay is for an active duty period, that's its definition too.

I understand you know a great deal about this stuff Ed, and I am very hesitant to disagree with you. From what I understand though, the military is wrong if they are not correcting these DD214s. The only times orders would be sufficient is the 3 exceptions in AR 635-40 para 8-2 for active duty periods not warranting a DD214. I don't necessarily know if there is a driving need to correct the DD214s if the orders are being sufficient to get everything done, but ultimately the stated goal of maintaining accuracy of military records is not being accomplished, IMO. I'm perfectly willing to be wrong on this though.
 
scoutCC said:
AR 635-200 1-32 and AR 135-178 are considerably different. See, AR 635-200 para 1-32 and AR 135-178 para 1-8. A reservist that gets diagnosed with an unfitting condition gets a chapter 6, convenience of the government discharge. That is why the LOD is so important, it brings them into the realm of 635-200. There is no discharge authority, while in a reserve status and subject to AR 135-178, for a disability retirement. See 10 USC 1201 and 10 USC 1204.



If they collected active duty pay after discharge, I agree that would be clear. However, if they changed their status, it would have been the government's booboo, a defective enlistment back into the reserve, and hence no pay should be collected. Changing the nature of the discharge doesn't make the reserve time impossible, just invalid, and a government booboo. If the injury occured in an activated period in 07, then they were activated again in 09, again, government booboo, and the discharge should be effective on the end of the 09 period.



I agree the DD214 would probably need to be corrected by the ABCMR, but the service secretary has the authority to direct other means to correct the discharge being incorrect. Ultimately, its that active duty discharge that is being declared FUBAR by the PEB, the REFRAD was incorrect and they should have been given disability retirement at the time the DD214 was cut. The LOD says it was active duty time the injury was incurred and you cannot be removed from active duty status without the correct discharge, which failed to happen.



DD214 is for an active duty period. That is its definition. A medical discharge w/ retirement pay or separation pay is for an active duty period, that's its definition too.

I understand you know a great deal about this stuff Ed, and I am very hesitant to disagree with you. From what I understand though, the military is wrong if they are not correcting these DD214s. The only times orders would be sufficient is the 3 exceptions in AR 635-40 para 8-2 for active duty periods not warranting a DD214. I don't necessarily know if there is a driving need to correct the DD214s if the orders are being sufficient to get everything done, but ultimately the stated goal of maintaining accuracy of military records is not being accomplished, IMO. I'm perfectly willing to be wrong on this though.
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I worked as the Deputy Chief of the Enlisted Branch of the Reserve Personnel Division of Headquarters, First US Army from January 1981 to January 1991. In January 1991 I went to the ABCMR and worked there until my retirement in 2011.

I was the approval authority for discharges in the Enlisted Branch. I also ordered and approved/disapproved formal LOD investigations. I wrote letters of instruction to our 17 MUSARCs (Major US Army Reserve Commands) on how to process Reservists for incap pay and to process them for separation for physical unfitness.

What I've told you is accurate to the best of my knowledge.
 
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