PORTSMOUTH -- Naval Medical Center Portsmouth will be part of a pilot system to streamline disability claims for medically-retiring service members.
Before the Disability Evaluation System was implemented, each branch of the military had its own disability evaluation system to review claims and determine benefits for wounded service members.
When a service member is injured and can no longer stay in the military, he or she is medically retired. The DES will consolidate the steps and streamline that process. Naval Medical Center Portsmouth currently processes more than 70 cases a month. The Disability Evaluation System will be located on the 7th floor of Building 3, which is the high rise down the hall from the new Patriots' Inn for wounded warriors, explained spokeswoman Deborah Kallghren. It's expected to begin on March 31, 2010. The military's DES pilot began in November 2007 at three Washington, DC-area facilities.
It's expanded several times since then and, with the addition of Portsmouth and five Army posts in 2010, there will be 27 military facilities in the program.
Other 2010 SITES:
Fort Benning, Georgia
Fort Riley, Kansas
Fort Bragg, N.C.
Fort Hood, Texas
Fort Lewis, Washington
