I just finished my first year of university, during which I was an active AFROTC cadet. I have a Type 2 scholarship that is supposed to be activated at the beginning of this coming semester, however I have just received news via the DoDMerb website that my waiver has been denied. I have not received any other notification, and am unaware of what exactly disqualified me. I know that on my file I had 3 disqualifications (cold allergy, asthma, and food allergies), but they are not quite accurate. I had just finished more testing that would support my assertion that I do not have asthma or asthmatic tendencies when I saw the denial. The waiver had been denied before I could even submit all of my testing, which would have most definitely helped my case. I understand that the decision to mark a disqualification is based off a "black and white accession", but because of this I ended up with unwarranted disqualifications.
To summarize a bit:
I don't have breathing issues, I don't have a history of asthma, or use an inhaler, and have never been hospitalized for ANY breathing problems. The foods that were listed as "allergies" are foods that I quite literally eat every single day, without fail, and even more so in preparation for events that will require great physical exertion (such as a sports game or a PT test). In addition to that I have no history of anaphylaxis or hospitalizations, and have never had any negative reactions to foods. I have gotten tested, seen specialists, and gotten notes from my PCM to confirm that I don't have asthma/history of asthma, or food allergies; I have documentation to discredit those disqualifications. In regards to the cold allergy, I have played sports year round since second grade, across the world, from snowstorms in Germany and New Mexico, to hail and wind in Korea and Turkey. The cold has never deterred me, or prevented me from being active in anything. Even this year while in was AFROTC, I participated in all of the activities, some of which took place in freezing weather. In the past year I spent as a cadet I participated in all kinds of activities such as mountain climbing in the snow, runs in freezing weather, and earned excellent PT scores.
I believe the items disqualifying me only ended up as disqualifications because of a misunderstanding or incorrect assumption from reading portions of file/records I have provided. I know I cannot submit my own little anecdotes for consideration, but unfortunately it appears the reality I have described above does not jump from the pages of medical records. My life and actual activities tell a completely different story than the disqualifications do.
I'm desperate and very determined to get this resolved so that I may continue as an AFROTC cadet. I have spoken with my medical technician and he told me it was possible to contest the decision, and that he has seen waivers be denied one year and approved the next. What can I do to fix this?
To summarize a bit:
I don't have breathing issues, I don't have a history of asthma, or use an inhaler, and have never been hospitalized for ANY breathing problems. The foods that were listed as "allergies" are foods that I quite literally eat every single day, without fail, and even more so in preparation for events that will require great physical exertion (such as a sports game or a PT test). In addition to that I have no history of anaphylaxis or hospitalizations, and have never had any negative reactions to foods. I have gotten tested, seen specialists, and gotten notes from my PCM to confirm that I don't have asthma/history of asthma, or food allergies; I have documentation to discredit those disqualifications. In regards to the cold allergy, I have played sports year round since second grade, across the world, from snowstorms in Germany and New Mexico, to hail and wind in Korea and Turkey. The cold has never deterred me, or prevented me from being active in anything. Even this year while in was AFROTC, I participated in all of the activities, some of which took place in freezing weather. In the past year I spent as a cadet I participated in all kinds of activities such as mountain climbing in the snow, runs in freezing weather, and earned excellent PT scores.
I believe the items disqualifying me only ended up as disqualifications because of a misunderstanding or incorrect assumption from reading portions of file/records I have provided. I know I cannot submit my own little anecdotes for consideration, but unfortunately it appears the reality I have described above does not jump from the pages of medical records. My life and actual activities tell a completely different story than the disqualifications do.
I'm desperate and very determined to get this resolved so that I may continue as an AFROTC cadet. I have spoken with my medical technician and he told me it was possible to contest the decision, and that he has seen waivers be denied one year and approved the next. What can I do to fix this?
