U.S. Military (Ret.): Avoid disaster (and red tape): Request copy of your records - Getting Out, Military Retirement - Military Times

U.S. Military (Ret.): Avoid disaster (and red tape): Request copy of your records

How valuable are your military records? Just ask retiree John Legner.

He wrote recently that he had served two enlistments in the Army, with a break in service. He had filed a claim for his injuries on his second enlistment, which was eventually approved with a disability rating of 50 percent.

He now has an additional claim from his first enlistment, but when he requested a copy of his medical records to justify it, the St. Louis National Personnel Records Center, which maintains all veterans medical records, told him his records could not be found.

How odd that his first claim was approved through his medical records, and now the same records are nowhere to be found. Legner has written to his congressperson and the secretary of Veterans Affairs, with no positive results.

Without direct access to their medical records, retirees face stiff challenges in proving that a disability exists. By law, the burden of proof is placed on retirees to challenge a complex bureaucratic system, including obtaining all the documentation to support their claim.

Retirees should be able to expect that their military health records are safely maintained and easily accessible after their discharge, especially in today’s electronic age. But as Legner has learned, that’s not always true.

Many older retirees are aware that part of the problem is the 1973 fire at the St. Louis records center that destroyed the records of millions of veterans. Reconstruction of the data in any records lost must come from other sources, most with limited military information — a truly daunting task.

If you’re getting ready to retire, make every effort to obtain a copy of your medical records before you leave service.

Those who are out of service should order a copy of their military records and keep them in a safe place. You can download the necessary forms at http://www.archives.gov/veterans/evetrecs, or you can write to the National Personnel Records Center, Military Personnel Records, 9700 Page Ave., St. Louis, MO 63132-5100.

Include a full description of what you’re seeking, with all pertinent personal information, such as Social Security or military ID number, date of birth and periods of service.

The records center also has information and forms for those seeking to reconstruct records that were lost in the fire.

Legner’s situation shows why having a personal copy of your records is important.

Although he was discharged after 1973, the year of the fire at the records center, his medical records still seem to have gone missing.

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Alex Keenan, a retired command master chief petty officer, served 28 years in the Coast Guard. E-mail him at retired@atpco.com.