UNCLASSIFIED ROUTINE R 131758Z JUL 17 FM CNO WASHINGTON DC TO NAVADMIN INFO CNO WASHINGTON DC BT 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(at)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(at)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.// BT #0001 NNNN UNCLASSIFIED//