ABCMR, what's next?

M

MoGuarddisabledvet

PEB Forum Regular Member
Registered Member
Long time lurker, new poster.

I have been reading all sorts of posts trying to find out about the process with the ABCMR, and I am confused as to what is next. I applied a year ago to the ABCMR with the help of a lawyer. I know that It will be a while longer before I hear anything else besides the email stating the ABCMR has received and docketed my case. I know this is a hurry up and wait thing, I played that game with the Army and the VA, so I feel I am well suited to handle this. I looking for process steps.

What I am really wanting to know are the stages, for instance once they "pick it up" to be worked what happens? Does the ABCMR advise your council, or you on what is happening, or do they just leave you in the dark until decision time like the VA? I am just curious how the process goes. During the time I applied to the VA, I was able to learn and understand the process so that I could be better prepared. VA was horrible at communicating anything (and still are) until the process was over at each stage. I was able to use eBenefits and VA.gov to kind of know what was happening, but I mainly had to read blogs and posts to get a better picture of what was happening inside the machine. Unfortunately, there really aren't many sources to understand the "what's next" at the ABCMR.

The PEB Forum is an outstanding way to share your experience! You never know how it has helped someone to better understand the process, such as myself.
 
You will get notified, sometime down the way, that the BCMR has either recommend your case to your service secretary or not. If you get recommend to the service secretary then a new process starts and that process determines if your record is changed.
 
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I went through the full BCMR process with the Air Force and here was my experience. I also filed through a lawyer. I think they only recommend the case to the service secretary if there is a chance that they can fix the issue. The idea is that you've exhausted all other administrative avenues for relief prior to the BCMR. If you've gone through every possible admin channel, the BCMR will go through their process. I'm assuming that the Army BCMR is similar to the Air Force. You will almost certainly get a medical advisory opinion and you have only 30 days to respond so be sure you're on top of that.

Prior to my BCMR submission, I appealed went through IPEB, FPEB, and SAFPC appeal. Below is my BCMR process/timeline:

June 2105: submitted BCMR appeal
June 2016: BCMR said they were missing all the attached evidence and only had the application sheet
June 2016: Resubmitted paperwork
Dec. 2016: Received advisory opinion (you only have 30 days to respond)
Jan. 2017: Responded to advisory opinion
Oct. 2017: Received additional advisory opinion (by the time we got it, we had only 5 days to respond)
Nov. 2017: Requested a pause due to delay of advisory opinion receipt so we could respond
Jan. 2018: Responded to advisory opinion
Feb. 2018: Received additional advisory opinion
Mar. 2018: Responded to advisory opinion
Aug. 2018: Board made their decision
 
robins said:
I went through the full BCMR process with the Air Force and here was my experience. I also filed through a lawyer. I think they only recommend the case to the service secretary if there is a chance that they can fix the issue. The idea is that you've exhausted all other administrative avenues for relief prior to the BCMR. If you've gone through every possible admin channel, the BCMR will go through their process. I'm assuming that the Army BCMR is similar to the Air Force. You will almost certainly get a medical advisory opinion and you have only 30 days to respond so be sure you're on top of that.

Prior to my BCMR submission, I appealed went through IPEB, FPEB, and SAFPC appeal. Below is my BCMR process/timeline:

June 2105: submitted BCMR appeal
June 2016: BCMR said they were missing all the attached evidence and only had the application sheet
June 2016: Resubmitted paperwork
Dec. 2016: Received advisory opinion (you only have 30 days to respond)
Jan. 2017: Responded to advisory opinion
Oct. 2017: Received additional advisory opinion (by the time we got it, we had only 5 days to respond)
Nov. 2017: Requested a pause due to delay of advisory opinion receipt so we could respond
Jan. 2018: Responded to advisory opinion
Feb. 2018: Received additional advisory opinion
Mar. 2018: Responded to advisory opinion
Aug. 2018: Board made their decision
Click to expand...
robins,

Thanks for the response!

It seems the Air Force has a much faster system than the Army. Hopefully, everything turned out in your favor at the BCMR. I was administratively discharged due to my condition being EPTS. Wasn't given an MEB/PEB either. When I was fighting the VA, I had an outside doctor who was a former Navy flight surgeon now turned orthopedic surgeon do a full medical opinion that helped me get service-connected all the way back to the date of my original claim. The Army and VA said I had arthritis in my back, but my MRIs and other records said otherwise. I now have nerve damage that affects both my legs and my back. I read a few posts here on this forum and discovered how you could upgrade your discharge. I hired a lawyer, and they filed my claim to the ABCMR last Summer. The lawyer representing me discovered many errors by the Army by not following their own regulations when discharging me. I was discharged under several regulations that had nothing to do with me and my injury. The Army medical doctor who recommended discharge wrote that there was no way I could continue due to my "incapacitating pain." Yet, I was administratively discharged with no medical evaluation.

I have the basics of what to expect from the ABCMR, just not some of the details of the process. I appreciate your input!
 
The hardest thing with the BCMR is that they presume that the previous board's or process were in the right so you have the overcome the presumption that they acted correctly. It seems like in most cases the board just follows the medical advisor's opinion so that is important. Your lawyer should know this but make sure they raise all potential issues because if they aren't raised, you can't raise them later in federal court if you don't get relief and choose to go that way.
 
robins said:
The hardest thing with the BCMR is that they presume that the previous board's or process were in the right so you have the overcome the presumption that they acted correctly. It seems like in most cases the board just follows the medical advisor's opinion so that is important. Your lawyer should know this but make sure they raise all potential issues because if they aren't raised, you can't raise them later in federal court if you don't get relief and choose to go that way.
Click to expand...
Good to know, thanks again!
 
Ok. Question to anyone. I'm a 10 year RE-3 combat vet. Served infantry 97-07. I was RE-3 over injuries and ptsd. Never got severance, or any kind of board. I found out about, and applied to the abmcr Jan 2019. They received the 149 or acknowledged a year later, and the only reply I get when I email them is a response of nothing has moved. At the beginning I was asked for the PEB documents because what they have shows void? Well, I don't have them because I was never given a board. I am now 100% VA, but curious on how much longer for abcmr.
 
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