Expert: MARK A. HOWELL - 3/1/2011

Question
QUESTION: Hello sir, my husband had a medical discharge from the Army after 9 years of service in 2007. It was for night blindness and they asked him at the time if he wanted to get out or stay and he wanted to get out. He received 0% disability from the Army, but 40% from the VA. In the meantime he has earned a Bachelor in International Business from UCCS and was thinking about getting back in, but in the Navy. The night blindness has recessed and he can get a Dr letter stating that. His GPA is 2.85 and the Navy recruiter said that the chances are rather slim, but he should maybe take the officers test anyway.His reenter code is 3 and the separation code is JFL. He will be 33 in June. What could he do to help the situation to a positive outcome? Thanks so much for your help and expertise.
Stephanie

ANSWER: Stephanie,
To start with he should visit another Navy recruiter.  Although your husband has been out of the Service for 3 years, he's still considered a re-enlistee, not a new recruit.  Recruiters get $0 for reenlistees, so some won't spend any time with them.  Also, recruiters are given a very small quota of reenlistees each year, so they get used up fast.  By now, I imagine they're all gone.

He should try again with a different recruiter on October 1st.  That's when the new quotas are given out.

A separation code of JFL means exactly, "Physical disability, entitled to severance pay."
Individuals with an RE Code of "3" can normally reenlist in any Service, but will require a waiver to be processed.  The recruiter can instruct him on how to apply for a waiver.  He'll need to prove that the reason for his discharge (night blindness) is no longer a problem.

Don't worry about his age.  The cutoff age for joining the Navy is 34, but he'll get a one year extension for each year of prior service.  So 34 + 9 = 43, that's his new age limit.

He'll lose his VA disability pay when he returns to the military, but the good news is that he won't have to do boot camp all over again and he may even get some stripes back.  Sometimes you will only lose 1 or 2 stripes with the Navy.  Once in, he should try for OCS if he wants to.  He'll have a better chance after he's already in.  That's contrary to my normal advice, but he just needs to get in first.

I salute him for wanting to return to the Service and appreciate his years served.
Colonel H

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

QUESTION: Sir, Thanks so much for the prompt answer. My husbands intentions are to come into the Navy as an officer and not to reenlist. Since he has a BA degree now he would want to be commissioned, that is why I pointed out his age. He does not want to be enlisted. What steps should he take for that? Does he fall under the same quota then, and is that why the recruiters rather seem uninterested? He did speak to an officer recruiter.

Answer
Stephanie,
Thanks for clarifying that for me.  I slightly misunderstood.  In today's poor economy I get so many questions from folks who desperately wish to rejoin.

Yes, everything else I said is true for officers also.  He's wise to use his education to his advantage and reenter as an officer.  Officer recruiters still get $0 for a prior service person.

Again, his best bet is to wait until Oct 1st.

Colonel H