DQ - Requested Waiver - What's next?

D

dumpyonion17

Member
Joined
Dec 16, 2022
Messages
31
Learned DS was DQ'd today but have not learned what the condition is that led to it. I'm thinking it might be a short bout of depression a few years ago (with treatment/medication) and maybe a football injury to his ankle that was no big deal.

My question is how much work should we do now to assist? For example, should he schedule psychological testing on his own (at our expense) to conclude the depression is resolved, or should we wait for USMA to instruct us on what to do next? We have documentation from his physician already noted in the chart from March, 2022 indicating that it was not depression but an adjustment disorder. Will USMA direct us to get testing or provide records, or will we do that on our own?

How long does it take from the waiver request being posted to an indication of what USMA wants us to do next?
 
Once USMA requests a waiver, the Army doctors will take over the process and request whatever they might need in additional medical information. The good news is it is their hands until something is requested, the bad news is it can take some time before the waiver is granted. My son suffered a head injury and concussion a few years ago. He knew he would need a waiver and supplied hospital records to DoDMERB when first requested (his DQ was from skull fracture and symptoms lasting longer than 3 months) so DoDMERB requested records for original DQ. There were no additional requests for records (as I remember) after waiver was requested. With USMA waivers are a two step process - if doctors recommend ‘Grant” then the waiver and medical recommendation comes back to an admissions waiver committee for final determination. It took about three months for the medical recommendation to come through for my son and another two or three weeks for the admissions committee to finally grant the waiver. So, patience is key and it is so hard on the candidate but it is pretty much out of your hands. We, like you, took pro-active steps to have neurosurgeons supply letters saying he had fully recovered and would not have any lingering symptoms nor would his past injury pose any hindrance to future training. These letters were not requested and I am not sure if they had any effect on the process. My son is now a USMA cadet and around many others that went through similar scenarios. Good luck and try to be patient.
 
MarTac said:
Once USMA requests a waiver, the Army doctors will take over the process and request whatever they might need in additional medical information. The good news is it is their hands until something is requested, the bad news is it can take some time before the waiver is granted. My son suffered a head injury and concussion a few years ago. He knew he would need a waiver and supplied hospital records to DoDMERB when first requested (his DQ was from skull fracture and symptoms lasting longer than 3 months) so DoDMERB requested records for original DQ. There were no additional requests for records (as I remember) after waiver was requested. With USMA waivers are a two step process - if doctors recommend ‘Grant” then the waiver and medical recommendation comes back to an admissions waiver committee for final determination. It took about three months for the medical recommendation to come through for my son and another two or three weeks for the admissions committee to finally grant the waiver. So, patience is key and it is so hard on the candidate but it is pretty much out of your hands. We, like you, took pro-active steps to have neurosurgeons supply letters saying he had fully recovered and would not have any lingering symptoms nor would his past injury pose any hindrance to future training. These letters were not requested and I am not sure if they had any effect on the process. My son is now a USMA cadet and around many others that went through similar scenarios. Good luck and try to be patient.
Click to expand...
All great advice. Thank you. It is hard on the candidate as well as the parents. But, we have to trust the process and let it play out.
 
The good news is that it is December. So, plenty of time. It is hard to wait for requests for more information...but at least you have identified this now rather than in February.
 
Waivers are reviewed by an Army doctor at Keller Hospital at West Point whose job is treating patients and other duties in addition to reviewing waiver requests. The length of time will depend on 3 things:
  1. Where your waiver is in the stack of waivers to be reviewed
  2. How much additional information might be required to make a decision
  3. How much time the doctor needs to spend on other hospital duties vs reviewing waiver requests
As noted above, having the waiver requested early in the process is very beneficial. That is why you hear so much about getting applications completed sooner rather than later.
 
Right! He's been on top of the process, sometimes with prompting from his loving parents, but he's very committed to it. I'm hoping that because it is early, there aren't a thousand cases ahead of him and he'll get notice soon about what he needs to submit and we'll help him get it in right away.
 
dumpyonion17 said:
Learned DS was DQ'd today but have not learned what the condition is that led to it. I'm thinking it might be a short bout of depression a few years ago (with treatment/medication) and maybe a football injury to his ankle that was no big deal.

My question is how much work should we do now to assist? For example, should he schedule psychological testing on his own (at our expense) to conclude the depression is resolved, or should we wait for USMA to instruct us on what to do next? We have documentation from his physician already noted in the chart from March, 2022 indicating that it was not depression but an adjustment disorder. Will USMA direct us to get testing or provide records, or will we do that on our own?

How long does it take from the waiver request being posted to an indication of what USMA wants us to do next?
Click to expand...
Sorry to hear. As parent of a current plebe at WP, this is my suggestion. Please find out whether the reason is truly depression. If yes, it is not good. It is very hard to get by at WP and military in the future. I think this is actually protection for those who have depression. WP and military is very very stressful and fast paced. They need people with almost perfect health condition, both physically and mentally. It needs people to be able to eat, sleep and act fast. It is just not suitable for people who have had depression.
 
dumpyonion17 said:
Learned DS was DQ'd today but have not learned what the condition is that led to it. I'm thinking it might be a short bout of depression a few years ago (with treatment/medication) and maybe a football injury to his ankle that was no big deal.

My question is how much work should we do now to assist? For example, should he schedule psychological testing on his own (at our expense) to conclude the depression is resolved, or should we wait for USMA to instruct us on what to do next? We have documentation from his physician already noted in the chart from March, 2022 indicating that it was not depression but an adjustment disorder. Will USMA direct us to get testing or provide records, or will we do that on our own?

How long does it take from the waiver request being posted to an indication of what USMA wants us to do next?
Click to expand...
Current cadet here that went through this process. I would get any additional testing that you think might help. If they ask for records, it's better to have them. I had to get a waiver for my eyesight, so what I did was go to a doctor that my FFR recommended, and she pretty much wrote me a note saying that yes, I have bad eyesight, but it will not get worse and will not prevent me from commissioning. Not sure if it changed anything, but I sent it in just to be safe. For me personally, I was DQ'ed for over a month, so be patient. It really depends on the person for how long it takes to get a waiver. Just be sure to check your DODMERB portal and candidate portal often, you'll see if they are asking for more records. Most likely he will get the waiver, there are tons of people at WP that were previously DQ'ed. Good luck!
 
exodus said:
Sorry to hear. As parent of a current plebe at WP, this is my suggestion. Please find out whether the reason is truly depression. If yes, it is not good. It is very hard to get by at WP and military in the future. I think this is actually protection for those who have depression. WP and military is very very stressful and fast paced. They need people with almost perfect health condition, both physically and mentally. It needs people to be able to eat, sleep and act fast. It is just not suitable for people who have had depression.
Click to expand...
Agreed and I've heard this as well. However, both his doctor and counselor have it documented in their notes that he was misdiagnosed when first seen and it was an adjustment disorder, not depression.
jlmz215 said:
Current cadet here that went through this process. I would get any additional testing that you think might help. If they ask for records, it's better to have them. I had to get a waiver for my eyesight, so what I did was go to a doctor that my FFR recommended, and she pretty much wrote me a note saying that yes, I have bad eyesight, but it will not get worse and will not prevent me from commissioning. Not sure if it changed anything, but I sent it in just to be safe. For me personally, I was DQ'ed for over a month, so be patient. It really depends on the person for how long it takes to get a waiver. Just be sure to check your DODMERB portal and candidate portal often, you'll see if they are asking for more records. Most likely he will get the waiver, there are tons of people at WP that were previously DQ'ed. Good luck!
Click to expand...
Thanks for the encouragement. With DodMERB being down, communication is slow and I think it only comes thru email but he has not received anything yet. Really hoping he gets the waiver. It is really important to him and he's worked very hard to get to this point.
 
And, as with everyone, he needs to have solid alternate plans. Good luck to him. And you!
 
jlmz215 said:
Current cadet here that went through this process. I would get any additional testing that you think might help. If they ask for records, it's better to have them. I had to get a waiver for my eyesight, so what I did was go to a doctor that my FFR recommended, and she pretty much wrote me a note saying that yes, I have bad eyesight, but it will not get worse and will not prevent me from commissioning. Not sure if it changed anything, but I sent it in just to be safe. For me personally, I was DQ'ed for over a month, so be patient. It really depends on the person for how long it takes to get a waiver. Just be sure to check your DODMERB portal and candidate portal often, you'll see if they are asking for more records. Most likely he will get the waiver, there are tons of people at WP that were previously DQ'ed. Good luck!
Click to expand...

Some random civilian doctor saying your eyesight will not prevent you from commissioning has zero bearing on what a military physician will determine for your waiver approval or denial. They have no idea what they are talking about in terms of military service.
 
dumpyonion17 said:
Learned DS was DQ'd today but have not learned what the condition is that led to it. I'm thinking it might be a short bout of depression a few years ago (with treatment/medication) and maybe a football injury to his ankle that was no big deal.

My question is how much work should we do now to assist? For example, should he schedule psychological testing on his own (at our expense) to conclude the depression is resolved, or should we wait for USMA to instruct us on what to do next? We have documentation from his physician already noted in the chart from March, 2022 indicating that it was not depression but an adjustment disorder. Will USMA direct us to get testing or provide records, or will we do that on our own?

How long does it take from the waiver request being posted to an indication of what USMA wants us to do next?
Click to expand...
After being notified of the DQ and waiver request, how long did it take to receive request for AMI? DS has been waiting for an email requesting records, but hasn't received anything. We just want to make sure we don't miss it, somehow.
 
We have not received any communication from DoDMERB and it has been one week since we learned of the DQ. I imagine with the holidays, it might be January before we hear anything else. DS emailed DoDMERB asking about the condition that caused DQ, but has not heard back yet, and that has been about a week too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top