DODMERB Rebuttal Process

nf1

Member
Joined
Oct 10, 2017
Messages
13
I am going to file for a rebuttal since my waivers got denied
I am going to include:
-Personal Statement
-Multiple Medical reviews that include Ihy i should stay in ROTC and why the condition does not affect military service

is there anything else i should include
 
What are the official diagnoses that got you DQ'ed?

Your past threads say developmental disorders (or Asperger's) and tachycardia.

I can give you suggestions based what it is you're trying to rebut.
 
I was 100% asymptomatic for tachycardia
1 still got dqed for developmental disorder and hearing loss in 1 ear which is avg 23db (for all ranges except 4000hz) and 38db at 4000hz
I can get as many doctors notices as need my developmental disorder is very minimal everyone I talk to says the wouldn't know until I told them
the hearing i can get as many doctors notes as needed as well all of it is just a matter of making the appointments
 
What are the official diagnoses that got you DQ'ed?

Your past threads say developmental disorders (or Asperger's) and tachycardia.

I can give you suggestions based what it is you're trying to rebut.

I was 100% asymptomatic for tachycardia
1 still got dqed for developmental disorder and hearing loss in 1 ear which is avg 23db (for all ranges except 4000hz) and 38db at 4000hz
I can get as many doctors notices as need my developmental disorder is very minimal everyone I talk to says the wouldn't know until I told them
the hearing i can get as many doctors notes as needed as well all of it is just a matter of making the appointments
 
So you need to take my advice with a grain of salt. There are no guarantees with my advice because I'm not the decision maker for medical waivers.

My #1 advice is to get opinions from military doctors to the extent your resources and efforts allow. Civilians doctors who say a patient is able to perform all military duties do not have much sway with decision makers. Remember, it's not simply being able to perform military duties- it's also being able to do so in deployed and austere environments. Those who have never been there, done that OR never been trained to make that judgment simply cannot make an informed recommendation on who can and cannot be in the military.

For asymptomatic tachycardia, you should present the results a 24-hour Holter monitor. Is this tachycardia all the time or comes and goes? Need to include labs done to ensure you don't have anemia, hyperthyroidism, or pheochromocytoma. Just to cover all bases, I would have a psychiatrist say you don't have some type of anxiety disorder which can be a cause of resting tachycardia. Even though you're asymptomatic now, it doesn't mean you won't have difficulty breathing, palpitations, or dizziness when you're doing something as simple as the duffle bag drag in Kuwait going to the terminal to catch your C-130 flight into Iraq. A cardiologist should provide a bona fide diagnosis as you why you have tachycardia as the "norm." The explanation should include why no treatment is recommended. It might even be beneficial to have a cardiologist who is fellowship trained as a electrophysiologist do an evaluation on you. If your final diagnosis is Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia, then that is a diagnosis of exclusion meaning all the other causes of tachycardia must be ruled out first.

When I hear (no pun intended) developmental disorders and hearing loss, then I wonder if they're connected. Many kids who have hearing issues also have difficulty with language skills or understanding what is taught in class which brings about the developmental disorder or delay.

The results of the pure tone audiograms (I'm assuming that's what you got) suggests to me you passed the standards. Are you sure the DQ is also for hearing? Are you above 35dB at any frequency?

What exactly is your developmental disorder? I'm not a psychiatrist but I'm thinking ADHD or autism spectrum disorder. It could also mean dyslexia, Tourette's syndrome (I had an attending one time with Tourette's and when he was mad, he'd suddenly start yelling, "Kill the medical student! Kill the medical student!" We'd just laugh it off because we knew it was just the Tourette's.), or other conditions. Again, what's your bona fide developmental disorder diagnosis?
 
So you need to take my advice with a grain of salt. There are no guarantees with my advice because I'm not the decision maker for medical waivers.

My #1 advice is to get opinions from military doctors to the extent your resources and efforts allow. Civilians doctors who say a patient is able to perform all military duties do not have much sway with decision makers. Remember, it's not simply being able to perform military duties- it's also being able to do so in deployed and austere environments. Those who have never been there, done that OR never been trained to make that judgment simply cannot make an informed recommendation on who can and cannot be in the military.

For asymptomatic tachycardia, you should present the results a 24-hour Holter monitor. Is this tachycardia all the time or comes and goes? Need to include labs done to ensure you don't have anemia, hyperthyroidism, or pheochromocytoma. Just to cover all bases, I would have a psychiatrist say you don't have some type of anxiety disorder which can be a cause of resting tachycardia. Even though you're asymptomatic now, it doesn't mean you won't have difficulty breathing, palpitations, or dizziness when you're doing something as simple as the duffle bag drag in Kuwait going to the terminal to catch your C-130 flight into Iraq. A cardiologist should provide a bona fide diagnosis as you why you have tachycardia as the "norm." The explanation should include why no treatment is recommended. It might even be beneficial to have a cardiologist who is fellowship trained as a electrophysiologist do an evaluation on you. If your final diagnosis is Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia, then that is a diagnosis of exclusion meaning all the other causes of tachycardia must be ruled out first.

When I hear (no pun intended) developmental disorders and hearing loss, then I wonder if they're connected. Many kids who have hearing issues also have difficulty with language skills or understanding what is taught in class which brings about the developmental disorder or delay.

The results of the pure tone audiograms (I'm assuming that's what you got) suggests to me you passed the standards. Are you sure the DQ is also for hearing? Are you above 35dB at any frequency?

What exactly is your developmental disorder? I'm not a psychiatrist but I'm thinking ADHD or autism spectrum disorder. It could also mean dyslexia, Tourette's syndrome (I had an attending one time with Tourette's and when he was mad, he'd suddenly start yelling, "Kill the medical student! Kill the medical student!" We'd just laugh it off because we knew it was just the Tourette's.), or other conditions. Again, what's your bona fide developmental disorder diagnosis?

The hearing was averaged at 23db at all freq except 4000hz which was 38db
I already sent them the holter study and they waived the tachycardia
The disorder is autism spectrum disorder

how would I find a military doctor to get an opinion from?
 
So you need to take my advice with a grain of salt. There are no guarantees with my advice because I'm not the decision maker for medical waivers.

My #1 advice is to get opinions from military doctors to the extent your resources and efforts allow. Civilians doctors who say a patient is able to perform all military duties do not have much sway with decision makers. Remember, it's not simply being able to perform military duties- it's also being able to do so in deployed and austere environments. Those who have never been there, done that OR never been trained to make that judgment simply cannot make an informed recommendation on who can and cannot be in the military.

For asymptomatic tachycardia, you should present the results a 24-hour Holter monitor. Is this tachycardia all the time or comes and goes? Need to include labs done to ensure you don't have anemia, hyperthyroidism, or pheochromocytoma. Just to cover all bases, I would have a psychiatrist say you don't have some type of anxiety disorder which can be a cause of resting tachycardia. Even though you're asymptomatic now, it doesn't mean you won't have difficulty breathing, palpitations, or dizziness when you're doing something as simple as the duffle bag drag in Kuwait going to the terminal to catch your C-130 flight into Iraq. A cardiologist should provide a bona fide diagnosis as you why you have tachycardia as the "norm." The explanation should include why no treatment is recommended. It might even be beneficial to have a cardiologist who is fellowship trained as a electrophysiologist do an evaluation on you. If your final diagnosis is Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia, then that is a diagnosis of exclusion meaning all the other causes of tachycardia must be ruled out first.

When I hear (no pun intended) developmental disorders and hearing loss, then I wonder if they're connected. Many kids who have hearing issues also have difficulty with language skills or understanding what is taught in class which brings about the developmental disorder or delay.

The results of the pure tone audiograms (I'm assuming that's what you got) suggests to me you passed the standards. Are you sure the DQ is also for hearing? Are you above 35dB at any frequency?

What exactly is your developmental disorder? I'm not a psychiatrist but I'm thinking ADHD or autism spectrum disorder. It could also mean dyslexia, Tourette's syndrome (I had an attending one time with Tourette's and when he was mad, he'd suddenly start yelling, "Kill the medical student! Kill the medical student!" We'd just laugh it off because we knew it was just the Tourette's.), or other conditions. Again, what's your bona fide developmental disorder diagnosis?

The hearing was averaged at 23db at all freq except 4000hz which was 38db
I already sent them the holter study and they waived the tachycardia
The disorder is autism spectrum disorder

how would I find a military doctor to get an opinion from?


If would have been freaking nice if you would have said you got a waiver for tachycardia already.

Your initial post said your waivers were denied and you proceeded to list your DQ conditions. I assumed your waiver got denied for all of them. Didn't it strike you as something important to mention that you already got a waiver for tachycardia?

OK. I'll assume your hearing didn't get waived. There is a test called the Speech Recognition in Noise Test (SPRINT) test that only the military uses. if you can get yourself into a military hospital and undergo that test, then you may have a chance at a rebuttal if you do very well. If you cannot get into a military hospital, then a civilian audiologist should do some type of testing that distinguishes your ability to hear in quiet and noise (also, ability to recognize sentences with background noise). Any test where you will hear words and you have to repeat them will work.

Again, there's something else going on here because the numbers you provide appear to be within the hearing standards. Nevertheless, I will go with you telling me you were DQ'ed for hearing. Consider getting a recent eval from a psychologist too so the reviewers will have the latest on where you're at with the ASD.

Autism spectrum disorder... never seen it waived before, but you're throwing a Hail Mary pass here. I would get documentation of all you academic achievements without any accommodations, use of meds, or support. It would help if you can document you've had a history of paid jobs. Your supervisors can then write a letter saying you did well will assigned tasks and showed up when you were scheduled to work. Any chance you're an Eagle Scout or been in CAP or JROTC? That would help some.

The DoD allows ROTC cadets to get evaluations in military hospitals for the purpose of determining fitness for military service. Are you in ROTC now? If so, then your unit should be able to link you up with a military hospital nearby. Costs (e.g. travel, lodging, etc) are on you though.

Good luck.
 
So you need to take my advice with a grain of salt. There are no guarantees with my advice because I'm not the decision maker for medical waivers.

My #1 advice is to get opinions from military doctors to the extent your resources and efforts allow. Civilians doctors who say a patient is able to perform all military duties do not have much sway with decision makers. Remember, it's not simply being able to perform military duties- it's also being able to do so in deployed and austere environments. Those who have never been there, done that OR never been trained to make that judgment simply cannot make an informed recommendation on who can and cannot be in the military.

For asymptomatic tachycardia, you should present the results a 24-hour Holter monitor. Is this tachycardia all the time or comes and goes? Need to include labs done to ensure you don't have anemia, hyperthyroidism, or pheochromocytoma. Just to cover all bases, I would have a psychiatrist say you don't have some type of anxiety disorder which can be a cause of resting tachycardia. Even though you're asymptomatic now, it doesn't mean you won't have difficulty breathing, palpitations, or dizziness when you're doing something as simple as the duffle bag drag in Kuwait going to the terminal to catch your C-130 flight into Iraq. A cardiologist should provide a bona fide diagnosis as you why you have tachycardia as the "norm." The explanation should include why no treatment is recommended. It might even be beneficial to have a cardiologist who is fellowship trained as a electrophysiologist do an evaluation on you. If your final diagnosis is Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia, then that is a diagnosis of exclusion meaning all the other causes of tachycardia must be ruled out first.

When I hear (no pun intended) developmental disorders and hearing loss, then I wonder if they're connected. Many kids who have hearing issues also have difficulty with language skills or understanding what is taught in class which brings about the developmental disorder or delay.

The results of the pure tone audiograms (I'm assuming that's what you got) suggests to me you passed the standards. Are you sure the DQ is also for hearing? Are you above 35dB at any frequency?

What exactly is your developmental disorder? I'm not a psychiatrist but I'm thinking ADHD or autism spectrum disorder. It could also mean dyslexia, Tourette's syndrome (I had an attending one time with Tourette's and when he was mad, he'd suddenly start yelling, "Kill the medical student! Kill the medical student!" We'd just laugh it off because we knew it was just the Tourette's.), or other conditions. Again, what's your bona fide developmental disorder diagnosis?

The hearing was averaged at 23db at all freq except 4000hz which was 38db
I already sent them the holter study and they waived the tachycardia
The disorder is autism spectrum disorder

how would I find a military doctor to get an opinion from?


If would have been freaking nice if you would have said you got a waiver for tachycardia already.

Your initial post said your waivers were denied and you proceeded to list your DQ conditions. I assumed your waiver got denied for all of them. Didn't it strike you as something important to mention that you already got a waiver for tachycardia?

OK. I'll assume your hearing didn't get waived. There is a test called the Speech Recognition in Noise Test (SPRINT) test that only the military uses. if you can get yourself into a military hospital and undergo that test, then you may have a chance at a rebuttal if you do very well. If you cannot get into a military hospital, then a civilian audiologist should do some type of testing that distinguishes your ability to hear in quiet and noise (also, ability to recognize sentences with background noise). Any test where you will hear words and you have to repeat them will work.

Again, there's something else going on here because the numbers you provide appear to be within the hearing standards. Nevertheless, I will go with you telling me you were DQ'ed for hearing. Consider getting a recent eval from a psychologist too so the reviewers will have the latest on where you're at with the ASD.

Autism spectrum disorder... never seen it waived before, but you're throwing a Hail Mary pass here. I would get documentation of all you academic achievements without any accommodations, use of meds, or support. It would help if you can document you've had a history of paid jobs. Your supervisors can then write a letter saying you did well will assigned tasks and showed up when you were scheduled to work. Any chance you're an Eagle Scout or been in CAP or JROTC? That would help some.

The DoD allows ROTC cadets to get evaluations in military hospitals for the purpose of determining fitness for military service. Are you in ROTC now? If so, then your unit should be able to link you up with a military hospital nearby. Costs (e.g. travel, lodging, etc) are on you though.

Good luck.

I made all the appointments, regarding the history of academic achievements and paid jobs, would college recommendation letters from my teacher and my boss do?, both are excellent
 
So you need to take my advice with a grain of salt. There are no guarantees with my advice because I'm not the decision maker for medical waivers.

My #1 advice is to get opinions from military doctors to the extent your resources and efforts allow. Civilians doctors who say a patient is able to perform all military duties do not have much sway with decision makers. Remember, it's not simply being able to perform military duties- it's also being able to do so in deployed and austere environments. Those who have never been there, done that OR never been trained to make that judgment simply cannot make an informed recommendation on who can and cannot be in the military.

For asymptomatic tachycardia, you should present the results a 24-hour Holter monitor. Is this tachycardia all the time or comes and goes? Need to include labs done to ensure you don't have anemia, hyperthyroidism, or pheochromocytoma. Just to cover all bases, I would have a psychiatrist say you don't have some type of anxiety disorder which can be a cause of resting tachycardia. Even though you're asymptomatic now, it doesn't mean you won't have difficulty breathing, palpitations, or dizziness when you're doing something as simple as the duffle bag drag in Kuwait going to the terminal to catch your C-130 flight into Iraq. A cardiologist should provide a bona fide diagnosis as you why you have tachycardia as the "norm." The explanation should include why no treatment is recommended. It might even be beneficial to have a cardiologist who is fellowship trained as a electrophysiologist do an evaluation on you. If your final diagnosis is Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia, then that is a diagnosis of exclusion meaning all the other causes of tachycardia must be ruled out first.

When I hear (no pun intended) developmental disorders and hearing loss, then I wonder if they're connected. Many kids who have hearing issues also have difficulty with language skills or understanding what is taught in class which brings about the developmental disorder or delay.

The results of the pure tone audiograms (I'm assuming that's what you got) suggests to me you passed the standards. Are you sure the DQ is also for hearing? Are you above 35dB at any frequency?

What exactly is your developmental disorder? I'm not a psychiatrist but I'm thinking ADHD or autism spectrum disorder. It could also mean dyslexia, Tourette's syndrome (I had an attending one time with Tourette's and when he was mad, he'd suddenly start yelling, "Kill the medical student! Kill the medical student!" We'd just laugh it off because we knew it was just the Tourette's.), or other conditions. Again, what's your bona fide developmental disorder diagnosis?

The hearing was averaged at 23db at all freq except 4000hz which was 38db
I already sent them the holter study and they waived the tachycardia
The disorder is autism spectrum disorder

how would I find a military doctor to get an opinion from?


If would have been freaking nice if you would have said you got a waiver for tachycardia already.

Your initial post said your waivers were denied and you proceeded to list your DQ conditions. I assumed your waiver got denied for all of them. Didn't it strike you as something important to mention that you already got a waiver for tachycardia?

OK. I'll assume your hearing didn't get waived. There is a test called the Speech Recognition in Noise Test (SPRINT) test that only the military uses. if you can get yourself into a military hospital and undergo that test, then you may have a chance at a rebuttal if you do very well. If you cannot get into a military hospital, then a civilian audiologist should do some type of testing that distinguishes your ability to hear in quiet and noise (also, ability to recognize sentences with background noise). Any test where you will hear words and you have to repeat them will work.

Again, there's something else going on here because the numbers you provide appear to be within the hearing standards. Nevertheless, I will go with you telling me you were DQ'ed for hearing. Consider getting a recent eval from a psychologist too so the reviewers will have the latest on where you're at with the ASD.

Autism spectrum disorder... never seen it waived before, but you're throwing a Hail Mary pass here. I would get documentation of all you academic achievements without any accommodations, use of meds, or support. It would help if you can document you've had a history of paid jobs. Your supervisors can then write a letter saying you did well will assigned tasks and showed up when you were scheduled to work. Any chance you're an Eagle Scout or been in CAP or JROTC? That would help some.

The DoD allows ROTC cadets to get evaluations in military hospitals for the purpose of determining fitness for military service. Are you in ROTC now? If so, then your unit should be able to link you up with a military hospital nearby. Costs (e.g. travel, lodging, etc) are on you though.

Good luck.

My hearing loss is : 35db 500hz 25db 1000hz 20db 2000hz 10db 4000hz
 
my waiver got denied for the second time today for repeated phenumia that I had 10 years ago , ashma that I never had .. I was only prescribed an inhaler for the time being , and exzema which was misdiagnosed . Is there any way to get around this or anything please help me !
 
So you need to take my advice with a grain of salt. There are no guarantees with my advice because I'm not the decision maker for medical waivers.

My #1 advice is to get opinions from military doctors to the extent your resources and efforts allow. Civilians doctors who say a patient is able to perform all military duties do not have much sway with decision makers. Remember, it's not simply being able to perform military duties- it's also being able to do so in deployed and austere environments. Those who have never been there, done that OR never been trained to make that judgment simply cannot make an informed recommendation on who can and cannot be in the military.

For asymptomatic tachycardia, you should present the results a 24-hour Holter monitor. Is this tachycardia all the time or comes and goes? Need to include labs done to ensure you don't have anemia, hyperthyroidism, or pheochromocytoma. Just to cover all bases, I would have a psychiatrist say you don't have some type of anxiety disorder which can be a cause of resting tachycardia. Even though you're asymptomatic now, it doesn't mean you won't have difficulty breathing, palpitations, or dizziness when you're doing something as simple as the duffle bag drag in Kuwait going to the terminal to catch your C-130 flight into Iraq. A cardiologist should provide a bona fide diagnosis as you why you have tachycardia as the "norm." The explanation should include why no treatment is recommended. It might even be beneficial to have a cardiologist who is fellowship trained as a electrophysiologist do an evaluation on you. If your final diagnosis is Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia, then that is a diagnosis of exclusion meaning all the other causes of tachycardia must be ruled out first.

When I hear (no pun intended) developmental disorders and hearing loss, then I wonder if they're connected. Many kids who have hearing issues also have difficulty with language skills or understanding what is taught in class which brings about the developmental disorder or delay.

The results of the pure tone audiograms (I'm assuming that's what you got) suggests to me you passed the standards. Are you sure the DQ is also for hearing? Are you above 35dB at any frequency?

What exactly is your developmental disorder? I'm not a psychiatrist but I'm thinking ADHD or autism spectrum disorder. It could also mean dyslexia, Tourette's syndrome (I had an attending one time with Tourette's and when he was mad, he'd suddenly start yelling, "Kill the medical student! Kill the medical student!" We'd just laugh it off because we knew it was just the Tourette's.), or other conditions. Again, what's your bona fide developmental disorder diagnosis?

The hearing was averaged at 23db at all freq except 4000hz which was 38db
I already sent them the holter study and they waived the tachycardia
The disorder is autism spectrum disorder

how would I find a military doctor to get an opinion from?


If would have been freaking nice if you would have said you got a waiver for tachycardia already.

Your initial post said your waivers were denied and you proceeded to list your DQ conditions. I assumed your waiver got denied for all of them. Didn't it strike you as something important to mention that you already got a waiver for tachycardia?

OK. I'll assume your hearing didn't get waived. There is a test called the Speech Recognition in Noise Test (SPRINT) test that only the military uses. if you can get yourself into a military hospital and undergo that test, then you may have a chance at a rebuttal if you do very well. If you cannot get into a military hospital, then a civilian audiologist should do some type of testing that distinguishes your ability to hear in quiet and noise (also, ability to recognize sentences with background noise). Any test where you will hear words and you have to repeat them will work.

Again, there's something else going on here because the numbers you provide appear to be within the hearing standards. Nevertheless, I will go with you telling me you were DQ'ed for hearing. Consider getting a recent eval from a psychologist too so the reviewers will have the latest on where you're at with the ASD.

Autism spectrum disorder... never seen it waived before, but you're throwing a Hail Mary pass here. I would get documentation of all you academic achievements without any accommodations, use of meds, or support. It would help if you can document you've had a history of paid jobs. Your supervisors can then write a letter saying you did well will assigned tasks and showed up when you were scheduled to work. Any chance you're an Eagle Scout or been in CAP or JROTC? That would help some.

The DoD allows ROTC cadets to get evaluations in military hospitals for the purpose of determining fitness for military service. Are you in ROTC now? If so, then your unit should be able to link you up with a military hospital nearby. Costs (e.g. travel, lodging, etc) are on you though.

Good luck.

DODMERB gave me the hearing waiver and are no going to asses the ASD they have requested the following,
-all medical records pertaining to Autism Spectrum Disorder to include
clinical notes and any counseling/therapy records.
-Counselor's statement regarding IEP
-copy of school transcripts
-copy of pharmacy records from 2015 until present.

What do they mean by All Medical Records? There is alot of paper work and it would be unrealistic to send it all, is there anything specific that they want or would keep them happy?
Which school Transcripts are they looking for HS or College
My college GPA is great but i failed a class my first semester, I have attached the transcript is there anything on it that would make them DQ?
 

Attachments

  • Transcript.pdf
    510.9 KB · Views: 29
I would like to get advises on how to file an appeal on an AFROTC waiver denial. My DD receives an AFROTC scholarship (type 1) and we thought everything were fine since they awarded her the scholarship but now with 2 weeks into college we found out from our DD that her waiver for allergy and eczema is being deny. This news just broke her heart. She had childhood eczema since she was 1 yr old and been in control with Cortizone ointment up until we pcsed to Oklahoma. After living in Oklahoma for a year our DD eczema got worse (she was about 10 yrs old at the time), she was referred by her PCM to see an allergist and was given some kind of water base cream (don't remember the name) to help relieve her eczema and it did the job. Her eczema only appeared on the creases of her arms. Our DD only saw that allergist for about a year then we pcsed again and her eczema was no longer an issue. As for her allergy, she only has seasonal allergy which she takes Claritin as needed. She told us the Sgt. who works in ROTC told her they will pay her tuition for this semester and to give her a "fighting chance" but if her appeal is deny again then she no longer receive the scholarship. Please help!
 
ETexasMom -- Below is an older thread on this topic . . . the AF medical waiver authority seems more "conservative" than the other services

https://www.serviceacademyforums.com/index.php?threads/waiver-denied-afrotc-what-to-do.61229/

If the AF waiver does not come through, you might ask your DD to consult with the AFROTC Det staff at her college to see if they can help her transfer to the NROTC or AROTC if she could see herself serving in either of those branches. They might be able to eventually award her a scholarship given she had qualified afor an AF Type 1 (congrats! those are hard to come by.)
 
Thank you for your reply. I just found that older thread and after going through it my heart just sank for my DD's future with the AF (she wants to follow her father's footstep in the AF).
 
Thank you for your reply. I just found that older thread and after going through it my heart just sank for my DD's future with the AF (she wants to follow her father's footstep in the AF).

Understood . . . My wife and I are retired AF officers, her brothers are now retired AF officers. Her dad is a retired AF MSgt. . . . My son really wanted to serve . . . so after the AF said "no" to his medical waiver, he shifted his focus to the Army . . . He will now commission as an Army officer this coming May . . . The Army is getting a fine young man that the AF refused to grant a waiver . . .
 
Back
Top