Peanut allergy waiver

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Reidm

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Mar 31, 2023
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After going through all the remedials I am being told by my allergist that he will tell dodmerb that I will have to carry an epi pen. I’ve never had any history of anaphylaxis but do have mild reactions. Do I have a chance to get a waiver? Is there anything I can do? I attended the usna summer seminar and had no trouble avoiding peanuts and assumed it wouldn’t be a problem if admitted. Any help would be appreciated.
 
Reidm said:
After going through all the remedials I am being told by my allergist that he will tell dodmerb that I will have to carry an epi pen. I’ve never had any history of anaphylaxis but do have mild reactions. Do I have a chance to get a waiver? Is there anything I can do? I attended the usna summer seminar and had no trouble avoiding peanuts and assumed it wouldn’t be a problem if admitted. Any help would be appreciated.
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The challenge is not so much avoiding peanuts at a 1-week summer program or while attending 4 years of USNA ashore, it’s serving in the Navy, often far from advanced medical care, in remote locations, thousands of miles from land, where the safety of the unit depends on everyone being the least vulnerable and most healthy they can be. And peanut oil is often found in processed food.

Not asking for details of your medical interactions, but it does seem people do get waivers for peanut allergies, and it usually involves one of those peanut eating desensitization therapies.

Surely someone here can post knowledgeably on recent peanut allergy and waiver issues.
 
I know every case and academy is different. I will share that my son was in same position as you..a principle nominee for his district and high scores across fitness and academics. He was not waived by USMA as of this week. Admissions Officer was very kind and called him personally to notify him it was a no-go. Recommendation was get the desensitization therapy and pass the nut challenge and reapply next year. He has not been DQ’d for it earlier but I guess it got missed somewhere along the way and then brought up during candidate reviews.
 
My son's dream of joining the military, specifically becoming a West Point cadet, seemed dashed by everything I'm reading on the peanut allergy disqualification and the difficulty of getting a waiver. We visited the allergist to possibly commence the dessensitization process but she mentioned the newly FDA approved drug Xolair as a better option than dessensitization. Does anyone know anything about this as a possible alternative to OIT? Further dampening our hopes is that he had a significant reaction a few months ago after eating some Chinese that likely contained peanut/tree nut. Wondering if it's even worth pursuing the waiver process. Any advice/updates would be appreciated!
 
Earl73 said:
My son's dream of joining the military, specifically becoming a West Point cadet, seemed dashed by everything I'm reading on the peanut allergy disqualification and the difficulty of getting a waiver. We visited the allergist to possibly commence the dessensitization process but she mentioned the newly FDA approved drug Xolair as a better option than dessensitization. Does anyone know anything about this as a possible alternative to OIT? Further dampening our hopes is that he had a significant reaction a few months ago after eating some Chinese that likely contained peanut/tree nut. Wondering if it's even worth pursuing the waiver process. Any advice/updates would be appreciated!
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I am in the Class of 2029 with a history of acute peanut reactions (no anaphylaxis). I was dq'd from all SAs. I've been doing OIT once a week since July, gradually dosing from 2ml to 8g of peanuts. I graduated from OIT two weeks ago. I completed the food challenge without issues. USAFA originally stated that my condition was not waivable, but stated that I could rebut after the completion of food immunotherapy. After my allergist submitted an AMI to DODMERB. Two days later, my waiver was granted. So, to answer your question, OIT is worth doing if your son still wants to join WP. Per DODMERB, it takes 30-45 days to review the case once AMI is received. So, OIT is needed ASAP. Best regard!
 
Earl73 said:
My son's dream of joining the military, specifically becoming a West Point cadet, seemed dashed by everything I'm reading on the peanut allergy disqualification and the difficulty of getting a waiver. We visited the allergist to possibly commence the dessensitization process but she mentioned the newly FDA approved drug Xolair as a better option than dessensitization. Does anyone know anything about this as a possible alternative to OIT? Further dampening our hopes is that he had a significant reaction a few months ago after eating some Chinese that likely contained peanut/tree nut. Wondering if it's even worth pursuing the waiver process. Any advice/updates would be appreciated!
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Also, USNA with LOA, and USMA were the ones that sent me the notice stating that the Admission Board had decided to pursue a waiver for me way before I completed the OIT program. Later, USAFA flatly denied me and was the one who gave me the waiver. I'm still hopeful for USNA and USMA's medical waiver knowing that each SA is different.
 
Twentyonine said:
I am in the Class of 2029 with a history of acute peanut reactions (no anaphylaxis). I was dq'd from all SAs. I've been doing OIT once a week since July, gradually dosing from 2ml to 8g of peanuts. I graduated from OIT two weeks ago. I completed the food challenge without issues. USAFA originally stated that my condition was not waivable, but stated that I could rebut after the completion of food immunotherapy. After my allergist submitted an AMI to DODMERB. Two days later, my waiver was granted. So, to answer your question, OIT is worth doing if your son still wants to join WP. Per DODMERB, it takes 30-45 days to review the case once AMI is received. So, OIT is needed ASAP. Best regard!
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Thank you! Starting OIT this month.
 
Any time with drug treatment, there will always be some side effects. Natural is better! The waiver was granted by USNA yesterday.
 
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