Ask your Shirt to track down if you are meeting the AMRO or DAWG again. Or, if you were, what their disposition was: returned to duty, review again, or IRILO directed. If I'm understanding correctly, sounds like you've already been referred and now a second Dr is also referring you?
The Chief of Medicine, Flight Nurse (usually a captain or major), or MSME will be able to track down an answer very quickly. The PEBLO will know if IRILO is directed, but so will your shirt and CC within a few days of it happening. If you have a dud of a Shirt, ask the Patient Advocate who these people are. You can ask these folks directly, but it's probably best to do what your rank can handle and/or get a recommendation/go-ahead to do so from the PA. There's a general lack of transparency with AMRO, which is something I've felt that the Air Force does wrong... always crickets between a referral and doing them doing IRILO.
It's common for folks to be seen at AMRO multiple times, usually for stability reasons or lack of medical opinions from people that don't specialize in your ailments. C-coded folks get reviewed annually, I believe. The AMRO is going to be looking for notes on your condition to make a decision to keep pushing forward. Somewhat similar to your situation, I had a code 37 applied immediately, which was a bit premature. I had to wait two months for an additional appointment with a neurologist to confirm my issues. My PCMs notes continuously said keep taking pills, go to physical therapy, pain medicine, etc.. The specialist's notes were what the AMRO wanted to see: "this dude can't walk right, his back and hips are effed, surgery not recommended."
The Dr's assertion that you won't be med boarded because of force-wide retention issues is incorrect. If you have a provider that is unwilling to refer you, and you know in your heart of hearts that you should be referred, find another physician.
I'll add also that you need to be absolutely sure that you want to be medboarded. The entire process itself is grueling. I'm at 19 months from initial referral. A lot of people get an unfair shake out of it, whether initially or over the course of years of filing claims/appeals/HLR. Read about the benefits/differences between being medically separated or retired vs just separating. Try to rate your conditions yourself using the VARSD, see if you would potentially hit 30% or more required for medical retirement. Use the MSD (medical standards directory) to see if the AF considers your conditions to be unfitting. Since you mentioned your hips, I'll use myself as an example. The VA rated me 30% for hip impingement/labral scarring, but the condition wasn't actually unfitting for the Air Force and consequently not addressed by the MEB (only my back and radiculopathy: 40%, 10%, 10%).
