Expert: MARK A. HOWELL - 10/20/2010

Question
I went to the recruiting office full of hope to not only find some direction in my life but many other things the army could of helped me with. I am a white 34 year old male in good shape that his only downfall is i have this disease multiple sclerosis. I was very excited about serving my country and finding a career and traveling all to be turned down for being sick and I am not even physically ill I have no evidence of even being ill I do have to take my medicine every day but other than that you would never know I am sick without me telling you. I am very let down and don't really know what else I can do.

Answer
Jason,
I’m sorry to hear you’re inflicted with MS.

The military considers MS a disqualifier for several reasons, but in short they’re not willing to gamble on you.  Once they accept you into the Service, the government will be responsible (one way or another) for your health care for the rest of your life.

MS is unpredictable and varies in severity. In some individuals, multiple sclerosis is a mild illness, but it can lead to permanent disability in others.  Because different nerves are affected at different times, MS symptoms often worsen, improve, and develop in different areas of the body.  I’m sure I’m not telling you anything new when I say MS symptoms are often vision changes, muscle weakness, dizziness, tremors, or spasms,  MS can progress steadily or cause acute attacks followed by partial or complete remission.  Many people with MS experience fatigue and need to rest and sleep during the day in order to continue their activities. The degree of fatigue may not be related to the severity of other symptoms.  As you can imagine, any or all of these are undesirable in a potential combat situation.  It’s not only your life but those of your teammates also.

Just because you’re not experiencing any ill effects now, doesn’t mean you won’t 20 or 30 years down the road.

It’s all about money nowadays, and they see you as a potentially expensive risk, so they’d rather take somebody with no physical problems and lower the costs.

Have you considered Federal Civil Service?  They're in all the Services working right alongside military folks, even overseas, the only difference is they don't wear uniforms or carry weapons, and there’s no health requirement to enter.  As a base commander, my deputy is often a civilian.  When I deploy to war, he remains behind and runs the base.  It may be worth your while to check into it at: http://www.usajobs.gov/  It’s a great way to serve your country, plus you can’t beat a steady government paycheck.

Best of luck in whatever you choose, and thanks for wanting to serve your country in uniform.
Colonel H

PS.  On the plus side, most individuals with MS have a normal lifespan.  I hope yours is long.