Which process is used to remove service members who can no longer perform their duties due to disability?

Which process is used to remove service members who can no longer perform their duties due to disability?

• A. Disability Evaluation System (DES).
• B. Medical Evaluation Board (MEB).
• C. Personnel reliability program.
• D. Fitness assessment.

Answer: (B)

When a service member’s ability to perform duties is compromised by a medical condition, a Medical Evaluation Board is initiated. This formal medical review brings together all relevant medical evidence—diagnoses, tests, functional limitations, and how the condition affects the ability to perform duties—to determine if the member is still fit for continued service. If the MEB concludes the member is unfit for duty, the case then moves into the disability evaluation process, which leads to a formal disability rating and disposition (such as retirement or separation with disability benefits). This differs from a Disability Evaluation System in that the DES is the broader program that manages disability processing, with the MEB being the specific medical step that assesses fitness for duty. The Personnel Reliability Program is about maintaining security and reliability of personnel, not diagnosing medical disability. A Fitness assessment, on the other hand, is a routine check of physical readiness, not a formal determination of long-term capability to perform duties due to disability.

When a service member’s ability to perform duties is compromised by a medical condition, a Medical Evaluation Board is initiated. This formal medical review brings together all relevant medical evidence—diagnoses, tests, functional limitations, and how the condition affects the ability to perform duties—to determine if the member is still fit for continued service. If the MEB concludes the member is unfit for duty, the case then moves into the disability evaluation process, which leads to a formal disability rating and disposition (such as retirement or separation with disability benefits).

This differs from a Disability Evaluation System in that the DES is the broader program that manages disability processing, with the MEB being the specific medical step that assesses fitness for duty. The Personnel Reliability Program is about maintaining security and reliability of personnel, not diagnosing medical disability. A Fitness assessment, on the other hand, is a routine check of physical readiness, not a formal determination of long-term capability to perform duties due to disability.