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Guest Post – Why Most of You Should Switch to the Blended Retirement System
By Dr. Keith Roxo, LCDR, MC(FS), USN*
My graduating class from the Naval Academy has just reached 20 years and the first in zone selection board for O-6 recently occurred. I was not in zone. This is because I am an O-4…for the second time. Even though I never had any intention of leaving active duty after my aviation contract, I did that very thing. Life has a way of intervening in our plans and we have to live and work within that reality. My reality was that at 10.5 years my spouse wanted me out. In hopes of averting marital disaster, I acquiesced and left active duty.
When I first arrived at the Naval Academy in 1994, the military didn’t even have the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP). The first enrollment period began in October 2001, 3.5 years after I was commissioned and more than 2/3rds of the way through my initial service obligation. Despite that, I was hooked for a bit longer as I was serving a concurrent obligation for an aviation contract that was eight years after my winging. I signed up for the TSP and have been contributing ever since. I was about to enter my first squadron and I was in the profession I had always wanted. I had no plans on leaving the military. If the Blended Retirement System (BRS) was available then I would not have switched and I would have been wrong given that I did leave active duty with no plan to return. As it turns out, my marriage failed anyway and I rejoined the military as a second time Ensign at USUHS.
By the time most physicians are able to leave, they are around half way to a retirement, as I was. I frequently tell people they shouldn’t leave the military for the money. You are giving up the ability to transfer the Post 9/11 GI Bill, the pension and the health benefit. Those are very valuable. But you shouldn’t stay for the money either. There is a lot that can happen between initially signing up for USUHS, HPSP, HSCP or FAP and when your commitment is up. Half way to a pension means you still have half to go. No amount of money is worth it if you are completely miserable and can do well enough in the civilian sector.
There have been countless articles that discuss the BRS (Editor – all of which can be seen here and here) and who, among the eligible, should or should not switch over to the new system. There are also numerous calculators that can show you, as best as possible, the actual number breakdown. However, few of these articles and calculators can account for the realities associated with leaving the military or staying until retirement eligibility. You never know what the next few years hold for you and how your goals in life may change, just as mine did.
This is why I recommend to all eligible people, who aren’t committed to well past 10 years, to make the switch to the BRS.
*The views expressed in this blog post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Department of the Navy, Department of Defense or the United States Government.
Construct for Implementation of Section 702 of NDAA 17 (Translation – Who’s Running the MTFs Under DHA?)
The document that tells us who is going to run military treatment facilities (MTFs) under the Defense Health Agency (DHA) was just released:
Construct for Implementation of Section 702
This quote from the first page gives you the bottom line:
As a general rule, at each MTF there will be a single military officer who will be dual hatted as the MTF Director, under the authority, direction, and control of the Director, Defense Health Agency (DHA), and the Service Commander, under the authority, direction, and control of the Military Department concerned. Acting on behalf of the Director, DHA, the MTF Director will determine the capacity of each MTF required to support both operational readiness and quality, access, and continuity in the delivery of clinical/health care services to members of the Armed Forces and other authorized beneficiaries.
With the objective of ensuring a “ready medical force” and a “medically ready force”, MTFs will be the default choice for the assignment, allocation, detail, or other utilization of military medical personnel. Such default will be subject to the capacity of the MTF to afford military medical personnel opportunities to obtain and maintain currency in the clinical Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities associated with their medical specialties and communities, at or above minimum established thresholds.
The drive for operational readiness and support of war fighting and operational missions take primacy over the delivery of clinical/health care services and the execution of business operations in an MTF. To this end, each Military Department will have unrestricted access to its military medical personnel for all validated war fighting and operational requirements.
Director for Clinical Support Services, Ft. Belvoir – 05/06
All of the info about this leadership opportunity are found in this document:
FY19 O4 Medical Corps Promotion Opportunity is 100%
As usual, the O4 promotion opportunity for Medical Corps officers is 100%. How do I know? Because the day the board starts you can go to the board webpage, download the convening order, and check page 2. It is always there.
Here’s the website:
http://www.public.navy.mil/bupers-npc/boards/activedutyofficer/04staff/Pages/FY-19.aspx
Here’s the convening order. Check page 2:
Updated Guidance on Career Intermission Program
Within the last few months there has been some updated guidance on the Navy’s Career Intermission Program (CIP) released in a new OPNAV instruction. In addition, the Medical Service Corps Chief put together this summary document for senior officers entitled “Talking Points #42 – Career Intermission Program” that is certainly relevant to the Medical Corps as well.
Just in case you are allergic to clicking on links and reading PDFs, here is the test from her summary document:
Director’s Guidance – The Career Intermission Program’s guidelines have recently been revised and updated with the release of OPNAVINST 1330.2C dated 12 March 2018. Senior MSC Officers should know of its existence as a talent management initiative and be able to discuss the potential benefits, risk and career impact with anyone who expresses a desire to participate.
Background – The Navy continues to explore talent management initiatives to ensure we are accessing and retaining the highest quality officers to ensure readiness. The CIP was piloted back in 2009 with the goal of reducing the number of quality service-members separating from Naval service for short- term personal reasons or to pursue professional or educational goals. The updated instruction delineates changes to the program, expands opportunities through the removal of the initial minimum service requirement and adds policy regarding ineligibility.
Key Messages:
- Participants are transferred from Active Duty to the In-active Ready Reserve (IRR) for a minimum of 12 months and a maximum of 36 months. This is a one-time per career opportunity.
- Participants and their families are still entitled to health care, commissary and exchange benefit.
- They will receive 2/30ths of their current base pay while in the IRR.
- Members must apply for CIP 12 months in advance of their PRD or “soft” end of active obligated service, whichever comes first.
- Participants are not eligible to receive any special or incentive pays or bonuses. Nor are they eligible for SGLI coverage, contributions to TSP or TA benefits.
- They will receive not observed fitreps during IRR.
- Participants are authorized PCS travel and transportation to their designated residence and to their subsequent duty station.
- Members must serve at least 12 months in IRR, but may return early.
- Some examples of non-eligible personnel: FOS’d officers, personnel in training pipeline, PFA failures within last 36 months or who don’t meet current standards, any record of legal issues within 36 months, currently deployed, limited duty status, or in receipt of PCS orders.
- Upon return to Active Duty, a service member’s date of rank (officers) or TIR (enlisted) will be adjusted 1 day forward for every day spent in the IRR (e.g, 365 days in the IRR will adjust a DOR of 1 January 2019).
- Requests will be processed as delineated in OPNAVINST 1330.2C
Talking Points:
- The Navy in general, and our Corps specifically, seeks to retain quality officers. The CIP is a talent management initiative to allow Sailors to take an intermission for personal or professional reasons.
- The Navy is tracking participation numbers in the CIP, retention numbers, and the impact of participation in the CIP as it relates to promotion statistics or leadership opportunities.
- It is a viable option for Sailors, officers and enlisted, to attain or achieve personal or professional goals without sacrificing their Naval careers.
FY19 O6 Staff Corps Promotion Board Statistics
The Medical Corps statistics were:
- Above Zone: 33 selected of 162 eligible = 20.4%
- In Zone: 30 selected of 73 eligible = 41.1%
- Below Zone: 3 selected of 190 eligible = 1.6%
- Total Selected = 66
The other staff corps board stats can be found in this document:
Navy Revises Delayed Dependent Travel of School-aged Dependents of Sailors Undergoing a PCS
WASHINGTON (NNS) — Effective immediately, to minimize the disruption to the education of school-aged children and increase family stability, Navy has revised the delayed dependent travel policy for Sailors who are undergoing a permanent change of station (PCS) and have school-aged dependents.
In line with Joint Travel Regulations, when PCS orders have been issued, a Sailor’s dependents may perform PCS travel at a different time. The Sailor may also be authorized a housing allowance based on the location at which the dependents maintained a permanent residence, at the previously approved designated place or the old permanent duty station.
Sailors with school-aged dependents frequently request delayed dependent travel. Under the old policy, approval for requests to delay dependent travel were normally limited to the end of the current school term, which is usually the end of June or December (depending on the member’s detach date). The new policy allows Sailors with school-aged dependents to request delayed dependent travel until the end of the school year.
For questions on this updated policy, contact the Military Pay and Compensation Policy Branch via email at Nxag_n130c@navy.mil.
For more news from Chief of Naval Personnel, visit www.navy.mil/local/cnp/.
WRNMMC Chief of Graduate Medical and Dental Education – O5/O6
I don’t have the due date for interest in this position, but the Position Description is here:
Chief of GME Position Description – WRNNMC
The POC is CDR Robert Liotta (contact info in the Global Address Book).
Joel Schofer's Career Planning Blog 