Expert: Jason Grabill - 9/6/2008

Question
I'm an active duty Cpl stationed at a security forces battalion. My primary MOS is 0311.. secondary is 8152 (security guard). Recently got diagnosed with a degenerative eye disease called Keratoconus that causes your vision to double and triple images. I have to wear gas-permeable contact lenses in order to see 20/25 and with glasses my eyesight is 20/40.. I've read that grounds for discharge is 20/45 (when corrected with glasses).. Might not be able to answer this question.. but do you know if that statement is true?
The second is that I am supposed to get orders to the fleet in about a year.. and its pretty obvious to me that a deployment would be out of the question given my circumstances.. would i still get orders to an infantry detachment?

My fear with bringing it up to my command is that I'll be dropped from the guard force immediately and sentenced to live out my remaining contract picking up trash with HQ.. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Answer
Joseph:

 I've never heard of getting a discharge for 20/45 vision uncorrected, and I know that I had 20-675 vision (in both eyes) at one point before I got lasik, and no one cared as long as I could see with contacts.  Where did you get that information?  Unless you saw it in a regulation, I'd say that it's incorrect.  For enlistment it's a different story, but once you are in, the regs change considerably.

 I don't think a deployment is 'out of the question'.  If you had been diagnosed PRIOR to enlistment, you would have been ineligible to enlist into any military branch.  However, since you now have it after enlistment, it's a different story entirely.  According to the research I've done, some forms of this are actually waiverable for pilots to continue flying.  

 Who diagnosed you?  Navy Medical or off base?  If it's Navy Medical, and it was something severe, your command would already be notified.  If it can be controlled with contact lenses then likely it's not going to be an issue.

 If you got this diagnosis off post, you need to let Navy Med know ASAP so they can properly evaluate the condition and take the steps to do what they can for you.  

 While I understand your concern about picking up trash etc at H&S Bn, if you are a danger to yourself or your fellow Marines, then you don't need to be standing a post, either.  Look at it like that, if it comes down to it, but from what I've been able to find, unless your condition isn't correctable, or I'm missing something, it doesn't appear to be an issue.

 Semper Fi!

  Jason