Navy Recruiting Medical Waiver Process
Over the past couple of decades, I have received a large number of emails asking me about the waiver process for medical issues. The Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS) may have already permanently disqualified the individual, or is concerned they may have a condition which force them to endure the process and anxiety of the medical waiver.
First of all, the approval of a medical waiver is the responsibility of the Commander, Navy Recruiting Command (CNRC). The Admiral makes a decision with input from a qualified medical authority.
To dispel a myth, Navy Recruiting does not use the Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery (BUMED) to make recommendations for an individual's physical/psychological condition to enter enlisted Naval service.
Back during the end of the last millennium, in an effort to reduce applicant waiting time (which often times extended three months or more), CNRC added to the staff a medical department. Commander, Navy Recruiting Command's medical staff (CNRC N33) which includes a doctor and a small cadre of Navy Corpsman who work at the CNRC headquarters in Millington, Tn. now makes the medical recommendations to the Admiral in a fraction of the time.
The Process:
You first must be permanently disqualified (PDQ) by the MEPS medical department. The disqualification could come from your initial medical document reading (you do not make a trip to MEPS), or during your physical at the MEPS.
Temporary disqualifications are not reviewed for medical waivers.
If the MEPS PDQ'd you based on the medical documents submitted, MEPS will not allow you to process further - CNRC N33 must direct MEPS to provide a physical only if they feel a waiver is possible. N33's direction to MEPS may also include additional consultations (a visit to an outside specialist like an orthopedic doctor or a cardiologist).
¹Requests for medical waivers will be sent to and processed by NAVCRUITCOM N33. Waivers will be processed without HIV and DAT results; however, under no circumstances will a person be shipped to RTC without HIV and DAT results being obtained and documented in MHS Genesis.
Note: You need to be prepared to make more than one visit to MEPS depending on consultation requirements.
Once the final results of the MEPS physical and consultations are complete (including blood work), those results will be sent to N33 for consideration. N33 will then make a recommendation to the Admiral (usually within 3-5 days depending on backload).
If the MEPS PDQ'd you during the physical then N33 may direct further testing via consultation, or make a final recommendation to the Admiral for approval or disapproval without further medical tests.
Answers for Common Medical Issues
If you have hypothyroidism that is asymptomatic and demonstrated euthyroid by normal thyroid stimulating hormone testing within the preceding 12 months, you do not require a waiver for the condition because it is NOT disqualifying. You will be able to continue your medication for the condition during boot-camp.
²Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) [is only disqualifying] if with:
- A recommended or prescribed Individualized Education Program, 504 Plan, or work accommodations after the 14th birthday;
- A history of comorbid mental disorders;
- Prescribed medication in the previous 24 months; or
- Documentation of adverse academic, occupational, or work performance.
Correction of Minor Disqualifying Defects
Recruiters and recruiting personnel must not recommend any doctor, dentist, or medical facility. The correction of any defects is your sole responsibility. Navy personnel must not give you any assurance, implied or otherwise, that you will be accepted if a disqualifying defect is corrected.
Medical Conditions which are unlikely to be waived¹
- Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), AIDS Related Complex (ARC).
- Single kidney - regardless of cause.
- Loss of an arm or leg.
- Seizure disorder with seizure or medication within five years.
- History of cancer with treatment within five years (except basal cell carcinoma or several other cancers that are in sustained remission with infrequent or no ongoing surveillance requirements).
- Diabetes Mellitus Type I or Type II.
- Loss of one eye.
- History of cataract surgery.
- History of any keratoconus or corneal ectasia (abnormal corneal shape) unless it meets the prescribed DoD stability standard.
- History of Glaucoma.
- Refractive surgery: Radial keratomy.
- History of Aphakia (lens replacement of the eye).
- Severe allergic reaction (Anaphylaxis) to insects or food.
- Cirrhosis.
- Corneal transplant history.
- Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis (inflammatory bowel disease).
- Severe deformities of the mouth, throat, or nose that interfere with speech or mastication of ordinary food.
- Scoliosis or kyphosis (spine curvature) that is symptomatic or outside of MANMED 15-48 limits.
- History of eating disorders: Anorexia Nervosa or Bulimia.
- Headaches (recurrent and severe), which require prescription medication or interfere with daily activity.
- Hepatitis, chronic: Hepatitis B or Hepatitis C carrier that has not been successfully treated with confirmed test of cure as per DoDI 6130.03.
- Malignant Hyperthermia or Hyperpyrexia (adverse reaction to anesthesia).
- Multiple Sclerosis (nerve disease involving muscle weakness and incoordination) and Muscular Dystrophy (progressive atrophy or wasting of the muscles).
- Severe orthopedic injuries that result in functional limitations secondary to residual muscle weakness, paralysis, or marked decreased range of motion.
- Otitis media (middle ear infection or inflammation), chronic or currently active. Chronic eustachian tube dysfunction, if associated with cholesteatoma, tympanic membrane perforation, hearing loss, or bony erosions of the inner ear.
- Pes Cavus (abnormally high arches of the feet with increased extension of the toes), severe, symptomatic or interferes with high impact activity.
- Pneumonectomy, removal of entire lung.
- Pregnancy (except for prior service processing for affiliation).
- Prosthetic replacement of joints.
- Psychiatric Conditions: Schizophrenia; Major Depression, recurrent; Bipolar Disorder; Panic disorders; Sexual disorders; and Personality disorders, severe.
- History of retinal disease or detachment.
- Un-descended testicle unless surgically removed or confirmed to be congenital disease.
- Chronic skin disorders, "hidradinitis suppurativa, psoriasis"
- Spinal fusion, greater than two vertebral spaces, congenital or surgical involving any number of vertebrae, by any method.
- Current drug or alcohol abuse or diagnosed substance dependence.
- History of neurofibromatosis.
- Congenital (birth) heart defects that have not been repaired or complex congenital heart disease, even if surgically repaired.
- History of intestinal bypass or other bariatric surgery.
- Severe head injury within the past five years.
- Anabolic Steroid Use. Any applicant admitting steroid use within the previous two months is not enlistment eligible.
I hope this helps you understand the process for a medical waiver, and hopefully make it a little less intimidating. As always, feel free to Contact me!
Note: The advice and prognostications delivered in my email or Facebook Messenger responses to your questions are based on years of experience, and I can only take into account the information you provide, so for a more definitive response, ensure you are thorough with the description of your issue(s).
Page written and maintained by NCCM Thomas Goering, USN (Retired).
If you are seeking information about joining the Navy, feel free to contact me.