Expert: Rod Powers - 10/2/2009

Question
QUESTION: In Feb. 08 I was misdiagnosed being bipolar by a doctor on Ft. Bragg.  I went to MEPS and instead of hiding it I told them because it was a misdiagnosis.  They stopped processing me after that and I have been fighting to get a Med-read or even a medical consult to prove I'm not.  I have 2 other doctors letters that even say that I am not bipolar, (1 Military, and 1 Civilian) and I even took the M.M.P.I.-2 test and it came back that I am normal with no behavioral abnormalities.  How do I go about getting them to give me a med read or consult or even letting me into the military I have only tried the Army I am not sure if any other branch would be easier but I want to join the Army.  But if it came down to it I would join another branch.  How do I fight this?  If you need any paperwork I can send it to you.  Thank you for your time!

ANSWER: Hi Charles,

Only the CMO (Chief Medical Officer) at MEPS can approve a med-read or consult. Going to a different service branch won't change anything (all of the service branches in a particular area use the same MEPS).

For more information about the US Military, feel free to visit my US Military website at: http://usmilitary.about.com

Hope this helps!

Rod Powers
http://usmilitary.about.com

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for your prompt response.  My follow up question is .. Could MEPS says yes but the Army says no to the med-read/consult?  Or is it just that if the MEPS says yes the Army will say yes?  I'm being told different things by different people, and the people I want/need to talk to no body will let me or get me in contact with.  I spoke to people at MEPCOM and they said to go down and talk to the Army liaison, but when I went down there they said they couldn't help with out being in put in to the system and start to be processed.  But I can't even get down there because of this. And I'm now in AZ visiting.  (Actually I spoke to a recruiter when I brought my children back from visiting with me, and he told me that he could make it happen but I needed to be here.  So I came out here and a month and a half later he tells me he won't even try.  I was in MO. where all this happened) Do you think that they might actually give me the med-read/consult, or even see me here?  The same recruiter told me to go to a different recruiter and only give them my dd-214 and tell them to start processing me.  Which I honestly don't want to do cause that's like sticking a snake in a jar and letting someone open it.  I just want to serve my country, while all these people are going in the military without telling them medical things I figure if I tell them the truth it'll be okay .... But no it kicks me right back in the face.  I know a girl who went in with Endometriosis and didn't tell them.  I know several people with behavioral problems that go in.  Thank you again for your time and help with this.  


Charles

Answer
Hi Charles,

At this point, it's up to MEPS.

Okay, here's how it works. The first step in the process is that you complete a medical pre-screening form that is sent to MEPS. If there are any medical conditions listed on that form that are obviously disqualifying, the CMO at MEPS determines whether you can process for a physical or not, or whether they need to see additional medical records.

It is completely at the discretion of the MEPS CMO. Think of him/her as "God" when it comes to this. There is no higher authority you can appeal to. Based on the pre-screening form, he/she can decide that you have a disqualifying condition that is unlikely to qualify for a medical waiver, and refuse to schedule you for a physical, or he/she can approve a consult to get additional information.

The service's "liaison" can intercede (ask the CMO to consider or re-consider), but it's still the CMO's decision. MEPS does not work for any individual service. Instead, they work for the Department of Defense. Generally, the MEPS liaison will only become involved if an individual recruiter asks him/her to do so. I'm afraid that right now, with the crappy civilian job market, recruiters are not having any problems meeting their recruiting goals, so are probably not going to be anxious to work with an applicant that needs extra time and paperwork. Why should they, when there are dozens of other applicants, waiting in line, who are qualified without extra paperwork or waivers?

While it is a federal offense to lie on any enlistment paperwork (see: http://usmilitary.about.com/cs/joiningup/a/falsestatements.htm), some people do. For civilians, there is no centralized computerized database of medical records. That means it would be very hard (and expensive) for the military to track down civilian medical records. The military doesn't even try, unless they have a good reason to do so.

For example, let's say someone in basic training is having problems, and the military doctor(s) at basic diagnose depression, and suspect it is a pre-existing condition. In that case, the military would spare no time and expense in tracking down previous medical records, and the recruit might spend several months in a "holding unit" in basic, while the service tries to decide if it was fraudulent enlistment, or not.

In your case, it's a little different, for two reasons:

(1) You've already told MEPS about your condition, and -- in these days of computers -- what one MEPS knows, other MEP locations also know.

(2) You said this condition was diagnosed by a military doctor. That means there are military medical records, and those are very easy for the military to obtain.

For more information about the US Military, feel free to visit my US Military website at: http://usmilitary.about.com

Hope this helps!

Rod Powers
http://usmilitary.about.com