Physical Evaluation Board Liasion Officer (PEBLO)

Your Soldiers Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) determines if they can be released from medical care and return to a Military Occupational Specialty (MOS), or to be medically discharged from military service and transfer care to Veterans Affairs (VA). There are four stages to the MEB process.

• MEB Stage 1: Referral
• MEB Stage 2: Claim Development
• MEB Stage 3: Medical Exam
• MEB Stage 4: Medical Evaluation Board

During each stage your Soldier will have appointments requiring them to travel from the home where they are receiving care and the medical facility they are assigned to for their medical appointments. These appointments are mandatory and part of their obligated service as a Soldier in the Army and each medical evaluation will assist both you and your Soldier with continued rehabilitation at home and future support from the Army and Veterans Affairs (VA).

Depending on the multi-disciplinary plan of care you have established with your Soldier and primary care team you may need to assist your Soldier to make sure they are meeting their appointments and military service obligations. Your role as a caregiver is to provide an honest account of the Soldier's needs to the Soldier's chain of command, Physical Evaluation Board Liaison Officer (PEBLO), and primary care provider.

There are three main ways the Caregiver can support their Solider through these medical evaluations:

1. Help the Soldier establish an appointment calendar
2. Maintain a personal folder of the Soldiers medical records
3. Establish a routine at the home that supports a work life balance

To learn more about the Medical Evaluation Board Process:

https://wct.army.mil/modules/soldier/s6-medicalBoards.html#MEB

Your Soldier's Physical Evaluation Board (PEB) is the final review of your Soldier’s medical file. The PEB contains two types of boards, informal and formal. The Army and Veterans Affairs (VA) use these boards to make a series of determination. First, it determines if your Soldier continues to serve in their current Military Occupational Specialty (MOS). Second, it determines if your Soldier is eligible for disability compensation, disability codes, and ratings from the Veterans Affairs (VA). Third, as your Soldier's final evaluation in their medical case file, it determines any combat-related criteria for addition benefits based on state and federal statutes, taxes, employment, and other civilian benefits.

The PEB process contains four stages:

1. The Informal Board
2. Proposed Ratings
3. Proposed Disposition
4. The Formal Board

How Caregivers can Support a Soldier:

- Continue your support and care

- Help the Soldier maintain an appointment calendar and make assigned appointments

- Maintain a personal folder of the Soldiers case file and receipt of any military documents

- Support your Soldier and Physical Evaluation Board Liaison Officer (PEBLO) with required paperwork

- Conduct a review of your personal finances

- Start discussing relocation to a home, if applicable, that will support the Soldier and their family

To learn more about the Physical Evaluation Board Process:

https://wct.army.mil/modules/soldier/s6-medicalBoards.html#MEB

Disability pay is contingent on your Soldier's physical and medical review boards. Once the medical case is complete, your Soldier's case will be reviewed and adjudicated to determine their level of eligibility. There are many factors impacting health and eligibility and a very closely monitored process and set of metrics that are monitored by the Health and Eligibility Center at the Veterans Affairs (VA).

To help your Soldier, it is crucial that you submit all required paper work and work with your Soldier's medical care team to thoroughly report all conditions. Every piece of information submitted will be carefully reviewed and have an impact on the final determination of your Soldier's benefits package and pay.

The disability rating system is composed of an extremely complex set of metrics approved and monitored by the Secretary of Department of Veterans Affairs. Just as each service member is unique, each disability case is specific. Different conditions have different scores depending on severity and the impact to the service member's quality of life. The physical and medical review boards and medical examinations define the particular condition of your Soldier and the disability ratings dictated the severity of the condition. A high level justification is provided to the Solider after adjudication.

It is important to note that you, your Soldier, or your Soldier's medical team can appeal and challenge the scoring if the justification provided does not reflect the Soldier's condition.

As you and your Soldier receive your final dispositions from both the Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) and Physical Evaluation Board (PEB) you will have the opportunity to consult with the medical team and the Physical Evaluation Board Liaison Officer (PEBLO) and prepare a rebuttal to the results that have been placed into your Soldier's case file. Your audit of these results are important because the board results will be the determining factors that will go into the Soldier's permanent military record and will also be used by the Veterans Affairs (VA) to determine the care and support they will receive once they are separated or retired from the Army.

(coming soon)