UNCLASSIFIED
ROUTINE
R 131758Z JUL 17
FM CNO WASHINGTON DC
TO NAVADMIN
INFO CNO WASHINGTON DC
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UNCLAS
NAVADMIN 173/17
MSGID/GENADMIN/CNO WASHINGTON DC/DNS/JUL//
SUBJ/GUIDANCE FOR TRANSFERRING HEALTH SERVICE TREATMENT RECORDS FOR ALL
UNITED STATES NAVY ACTIVE AND SELECTED RESERVE SERVICE MEMBERS
REF/A/MSG/CNO WASHINGTON DC/DNS/192157Z AUG 14//
REF/B/DOC/DODI 6040.45/16 NOV 2015//
REF/C/DOC/BUMED/10 NOV 2015//
REF/D/DOC/BUMED/20 JUN 2016//
REF/E/DOC/MILPERSMAN 6150-010/12 OCT 2015//
REF/F/MSG/SECNAV WASHINGTON DC/062126Z OCT 16//
REF/G/MSG/DON CIO WASHINGTON DC/151450Z MAR 17//
NARR/REF A IS NAVADMIN 187/14, PROPER TRANSFER OF HEALTH SERVICE TREATMENT
RECORDS OF TRANSITIONING SERVICE MEMBERS TO VETERANS ADMINISTRATION.
REF B IS DODI 6040.45, DOD HEALTH RECORD LIFE CYCLE MANAGEMENT.
REF C IS MANUAL OF THE MEDICAL DEPARTMENT, CHAPTER 16.
REF D IS BUMEDNOTE 6150, EXAMPLES OF EXCEPTIONS TO "NO HAND CARRY GUIDANCE."
REF E IS MILPERSMAN ARTICLE 6150-010, TRANSFER OF OUTPATIENT AND DENTAL
TREATMENT RECORDS, OFFICER AND ENLISTED.
REF F IS ALNAV 066/16, GUIDANCE FOR ARCHIVING HEALTH SERVICE TREATMENT
RECORDS FOR DON ACTIVE/SELRES SERVICE MEMBERS.
REF G IS DON CIO MESSAGE, SSN REDUCTION.//
RMKS/1. This NAVADMIN is an update to reference (a) to clarify the
Department of the Navy (DON) process for the proper transfer of medical and
dental records, hereafter known as service treatment records (STR), of
transitioning Navy active and ready reserve Service Members to the Department
of Veterans Affairs (VA). Proper archiving of STRs is required for future
benefits with the VA. Failure to properly maintain STRs within
medical/dental departments could affect these future benefits. As such, the
Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness has
mandated a 45-calendar day submission timeline for all Services to transfer
STRs to the VA. DON shall comply with the timeliness standards and make
records available within 45-calendar days from the separation/retirement date
from active duty. For Reserve Component members who do not separate from
Service but file a VA benefits claim, STRs must be available within
45-calendar days after notification by the VA of pending claim.
2. References (a) and (b) provide guidelines to properly archive STRs.
Reference (a) is cancelled effective upon the release of this NAVADMIN. Per
references (b) and (c), STRs are the property of the Department of Defense
(DoD). Commanding Officers (CO) are responsible for ensuring STRs are
properly retired and shall implement collaborative processing of STRs
involving the medical/dental and administrative departments that maintain
custody of Service Member STRs. Reference (f) requires STRs to be
transferred to the VA within 45 days of separation to ensure Service
Member disability claims are processed within the established timelines set
forth by the Secretary of the Navy. Service Members who are authorized to
hand carry their STRs must protect the integrity of the information and
provide it to the appropriate DoD activity prior to departing on terminal
leave.
3. General STR Disposition Process:
a. A complete STR for disposition includes: Service provided medical
and dental documentation, civilian provided medical and dental documentation,
and the STR Certification Memo (DD Form 2963). STRs shall not contain
printed pages of the electronic Armed Forces Health Longitudinal Technology
Application Web Print (AWP) or Military Health System GENESIS notes unless
they contain pen and ink notes from the provider.
b. Effective immediately, for Navy personnel, all medical and dental
departments, Battalion Aid Stations (BAS), Regimental Aid Stations (RAS),
medical treatment facilities (MTF), Navy Operational Support Centers (NOSC),
Navy Recruiting Districts (NRD), and operational and remote forces shall mail
the STR at terminal leave commencement or no later than (NLT) five calendar
days after a Navy member's separation/retirement date via 3b(1) or 3b(2)
below.
(1) All Navy MTFs, Branch Health Clinics (BHC), BASs, RASs, and NOSCs
shall send STRs using the scanning contractor manifest process. Website
access to the manifest system can be obtained via
http://pmo.anacomp.com. Upon manifest process completion, the STRs shall be
mailed to the following physical address:
ANACOMP, Inc.
1856 Borman Court
St. Louis, MO 63146
(2) All operational platforms, NRDs, and remote units are not
required to use the above manifest system process, but are encouraged to use
the process in order to improve STR arrival timeliness, when available. All
operational platforms, NRDs, and remote units will mail non-manifested
records to the Navy Medicine Records Activity (NMRA) at the following
address:
Navy Medicine Records Activity
4300 Goodfellow Blvd, Bldg. 103
St Louis, MO 63120
(3) STRs shall not be mailed to the VA, National Personnel Records
Center, or National Archives Records Administration (NARA).
(4) Appellate Leave Personnel. Records shall remain in the custody
of the medical and dental department where member receives care. If member
is processed for separation, the STR must be mailed to NMRA NLT five calendar
days after the separation date, by the medical/dental department that
maintains custody of the records.
(5) Confined Personnel. Upon member's release from the brig and
separation from service, the STR shall be sent to NMRA or be manifested and
sent to the scanning contractor NLT five calendar days after the separation
date by the brig.
(6) Reserve Personnel. Reserve component personnel leaving active
duty and returning to drill status are not considered separating for purposes
of the STR disposition process. If a reserve member is not separating, but
is filing a claim with the VA, the reserve component will send a clear and
accurate copy of the STR to the scanning facility using the scanning
contractor manifest system NLT five calendar days following notification by
the VA of a pending claim.
(7) Individual Ready Reserve (IRR)/Active Status Pool (ASP).
Transfer into the IRR/ASP is an STR submission occasion, and STRs for all
members of the IRR/ASP shall be dispositioned per the instructions outlined
in paragraph 5. Transfer into the Voluntary Training Unit (VTU) is not an
STR submission occasion and those members shall continue to have their STRs
maintained at their unit's parent activity until the member retires or
separates.
(8) Navy Members Enrolled to Other-Service MTFs. Other-Service MTF
must forward the STR directly to NMRA using the instructions outlined in
paragraph 5.
(9) Unplanned Separations. Unplanned separations have a short
suspense for member's release from service. Upon members' completion of a
separation physical, COs shall ensure the STR disposition process is followed
per paragraph 3.
4. Mailing Process:
a. STRs may be sent individually or as a bundle (a bundle includes
multiple members' STR volumes in one package). Medical and dental records
staff shall mail the medical and dental records together at the commencement
of terminal leave or NLT five calendar days from a Service Member's
separation/retirement from service. Per reference (g), when mailing 25 or
more hard copy records containing personally identifying information, the
package shall be double wrapped and the inner package marked "For Official
Use Only, Privacy Sensitive."
b. Record departments are required to use NARA standard white record
retirement boxes or other same-sized box, purchased specifically for
shipping. Box liners such as plastic bags shall be used when shipping STRs.
CONUS commands with access to the manifest system may request supplies be
shipped directly to them. OCONUS commands may contact NMRA who will obtain
and mail the supplies to the command.
c. Shipping Envelopes. Record departments shall not wait for a full box
to mail STRs. If there are individual STRs or the STR bundle will easily fit
into an envelope, one may be used. Envelopes must be tear resistant (i.e.,
fiber/cloth-like construction).
5. Responsibilities.
a. Commanders, COs, and Officers-in-Charge (OIC) Responsibilities.
(1) Commanders, COs, and OICs are responsible for all aspects of the
STR disposition process for their unit as part of the administrative
requirements of the separations process per reference (f).
(2) Each unit must initiate the separation process per command policy
and Bureau of Naval Personnel (BUPERS) separation requirements at a minimum
90 to 120 days prior to separation to ensure its completion prior to the
Service Member's release from active duty.
(3) Each unit must confirm the STR is not in the possession of the
Service member. If the Service member has possession of the STR, the member
must submit the STR to the appropriate medical and dental departments for
disposition no later than 30 days prior to separation or terminal leave
commencement date.
(4) If STR is not in the possession of the medical and/or dental
departments, the member shall sign a SF 600 (chronological record of medical
care) stating the STR is not in their possession. The SF 600 shall be
included as part of the STR by uploading it into the Health Artifact and
Image Management Solution (HAIMS).
(5) If STR is not in the possession of the medical and/or dental
departments and the member refuses to sign a SF 600 stating the STR is not in
their possession, then Unit COs may hold temporary duty and terminal leave in
abeyance as deemed necessary to facilitate completion of the STR submission
prior to separation of a Service member. Service members may not be retained
on active duty beyond the expiration of their active duty service obligation
unless specifically provided for by applicable law and policy from BUPERS.
(6) Service Member's Unit chain of command must provide the Separation
Questionnaire (NPPSC 1900/1) via the personnel department for completion 30
days prior to separation.
(7) Medical Record Officers and Dental Record Officers or respective
departmental representative shall ensure records are at the facility or that
the member has signed a SF 600 stating they do not have the records in their
possession, prior to signing the Separation Questionnaire (NPPSC 1900/1).
(8) Echelon 2 commanders will appoint STR point of contacts at each
subordinate echelon to serve as the responsible individual (RI) and an
alternate RI (ARI) for all STR retirement matters and manage the STR tracking
and reporting tool reports. In addition, the STR RI and ARI will regularly
communicate with NMRA Coordination Cell for issue resolution and
coordination. Send e-mail STR RI and ARI contact information to NMRA at:
usn.ncr.bumedfchva.mbx.nmra-navy-str@mail.mil within 30 days of release of
this NAVADMIN.
b. Service Member Responsibilities.
(1) Upon command check-in, the Service Member must surrender their
STR to the appropriate medical/dental facility responsible for the member's
primary care. Additionally, prior to end of active service, execution of
transitional permissive temporary additional duty, post deployment
mobilization respite absence, or separation/terminal leave, each Service
Member must ensure their STR is in possession of the appropriate medical or
dental department for processing and disposition.
(2) Per references (b) and (c), STRs are the property of the DoD.
Service Members are responsible for their STR and are not permitted to hand
carry original copies of their STRs unless authorized per references (d) and
(e). Service Members who are authorized to hand carry their STRs must
protect the integrity of the information and provide it to the appropriate
DoD authority within 48 hours of arrival to new assignment or Transient
Personnel Unit, unless indicated as an exception to hand carry policy unit
such as deployment, Individual Augmentee, Specialized Training Unit, etc.
c. Administration Department and Command Separations Division
Responsibilities. Each Navy administration department shall modify the
command separation checkout sheets to include the following:
(1) Identify the Service Member's duty stations for the past five
years, if the medical and/or dental records cannot be located.
(2) Ensure that all checkout sheets contain a legibly printed name,
date, and signature of an authorized staff member from the medical and dental
departments.
(3) The command administrative departments must coordinate with
medical and dental departments to ensure possession of the record prior to
the member?s departure on terminal leave.
d. Medical Administration Department Responsibilities.
(1) This section applies to commands with medical and dental
departments as well as commands that have Authorized Medical Department
Representatives to include Independent Duty Corpsman and MTF Patient
Administration Departments. Any activity that maintains medical records
shall meet the requirements in this section.
(2) The medical department representative is responsible for the
retirement of the STR for each retiring/separating Service Member. Medical
Administration shall notify the dental department of all separations and
ensure medical and dental record personnel work together to assemble the
complete STR.
(a) Until missing STRs are located and sent to the scanning
contractor, medical, and dental departments are required to continue to
search for the STR. If not found, the STR can be declared lost but only
after due diligence has been performed as follows and documented on the STR
Certification form (DD Form 2963):
1. Contact the Service Member and ensure they sign the
SF 600 indicating that their STR is or is not in their possession.
2. Contact the Veterans Administration Records Management
Center at 1-800-827-1000.
3. Contact the Service Member's duty stations for the past
five years. If prior duty stations are unknown, the responsible unit shall
contact Navy Personnel Command customer service center at 1-866-827-5672/DSN:
882-5672, e-mail: uasknpc@navy.mil.
(b) If STR is in the Service Member's possession, direct them to
return the STR to the MTF or mail the STR directly to NMRA (see address in
paragraph 3b(2)).
e. BUPERS Responsibilities.
(1) BUPERS shall provide NMRA with weekly separations lists, until a
full transition has been made to the STR tracking tool within the Navy
Standard Integrated Personnel System.
(2) Personnel Support Detachments shall provide weekly separation
lists to MTFs, clinics, ships, etc. for their area of responsibility.
6. Monthly Delinquent Reporting Requirements.
a. Per reference (f), STRs not received at the scanning contractor
within 20-days from the Service Member’s separation date, will be placed on a
delinquent report.
b. NMRA will forward the 20-day delinquent report to the Director of
Navy Staff (DNS) on a twice monthly basis.
c. DNS will disseminate and/or task all Navy commanders, COs, OICs, and
inform the appropriate medical departments, via their echelon 2 commands, to
submit the delinquent STR to the appropriate medical/dental department.
7. Navy Medicine is in the process of conducting STR digitization
initiatives that will reduce overall inventory of paper STRs at MTFs. The
goal is to ensure optimal continuity of care while facilitating transition to
a full electronic health record. The medical record for members involved in
the pilot will exist in digital format and will be available via the HAIMS.
For operational units, members may be provided a disk to hand carry a digital
copy of their AWP and additional required medical documentation in Portable
Document Format.
8. Ensuring Service Members experience an orderly transition to civilian
life is of paramount importance to the DON. An important enabler of this
transition is the timely transfer of the separating or retiring Service
Member's STR to the VA.
9. Released by VADM J. G. FOGGO, Director, Navy Staff.//
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