Just passing on some wisdom from my case and info I have from my PEBLO,VA and PEB contacts.
To start:
The NMA is the non-medical assessment from your commander stating if and how your injuries effect your job performance. This document is very important so do not overlook it. If you want an unfit finding, this is not the time for your commander to write what a great service member you are and how your injuries don't effect your job performance. Likewise the other way around if you want a fit finding.
When it really should not be, in my opinion this document has a lot of pull when I do not think it should because it is just that, a "non-medical assessment". Oxymoron of such for someone who is on a medical board for a medical condition for a non medical provider to give their input.
However, by now you must know by now how idiotic this system is. Just ensure you review this before it is sent off to the PEB because I have known multiple people who have had to go up for formal boards. All they did was change the NMA and then they were found unfit, some with upwards of 70-100% VA ratings with DoD retirement. Just because their commander thought a positive NMA would be beneficial for the service member to make them look good on the board. In this case a positive report is not always the best report. For my Marines out there, keep the positive statements for your fitreps and the NMA separate!
To start:
The NMA is the non-medical assessment from your commander stating if and how your injuries effect your job performance. This document is very important so do not overlook it. If you want an unfit finding, this is not the time for your commander to write what a great service member you are and how your injuries don't effect your job performance. Likewise the other way around if you want a fit finding.
When it really should not be, in my opinion this document has a lot of pull when I do not think it should because it is just that, a "non-medical assessment". Oxymoron of such for someone who is on a medical board for a medical condition for a non medical provider to give their input.
However, by now you must know by now how idiotic this system is. Just ensure you review this before it is sent off to the PEB because I have known multiple people who have had to go up for formal boards. All they did was change the NMA and then they were found unfit, some with upwards of 70-100% VA ratings with DoD retirement. Just because their commander thought a positive NMA would be beneficial for the service member to make them look good on the board. In this case a positive report is not always the best report. For my Marines out there, keep the positive statements for your fitreps and the NMA separate!