§658 Medical accession standards for members of the armed forces

Summary

The Secretary of Defense must create one set of medical rules for people trying to join the armed forces by appointment, enlistment, or induction. The Secretary must also make those rules easy for applicants to find and understand, and must explain how someone can ask for a review or a medical waiver. The Secretary must set up a review and waiver process that looks at all medical facts and the military’s needs when deciding cases. The waiver rules must allow approvals when it serves national security (a compelling government need to get someone whose service would directly support the Department’s warfighting capabilities). Each year the Secretary must report to the House and Senate Armed Services Committees the number of people disqualified the prior calendar year for medical reasons, the number and types of waivers granted that year, and any changes to the rules or waiver process. If the Coast Guard accepts someone under the waiver process in any fiscal year, the department running the Coast Guard must report the same waiver information to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee.