{"id":74989,"date":"2024-03-14T14:35:28","date_gmt":"2024-03-14T14:35:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2024\/03\/14\/how-addressing-waivers-and-eligibility-can-fix-the-recruiting-crisis\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T16:18:30","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T16:18:30","slug":"how-addressing-waivers-and-eligibility-can-fix-the-recruiting-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/opinion\/2024\/03\/14\/how-addressing-waivers-and-eligibility-can-fix-the-recruiting-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"How addressing waivers and eligibility can fix the recruiting crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Several reasons for the U.S. military\u2019s recruiting crisis are largely out of its control. But there is one problem that is squarely within the Pentagon\u2019s ability to fix<\/a>: the process by which potential recruits are evaluated\u2014and far too often rejected\u2014for their medical ability to serve. I propose two common-sense changes to overly bureaucratic processes and stringent standards, which would enable the military to access thousands more service members per year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having been medically rejected three times before ultimately receiving a medical waiver to join the Air National Guard in 2018, I know firsthand how illogical and infuriating this process can be. But, it was through my efforts advising over 400 similarly rejected applicants that I realized that larger-scale change is needed. By my calculations, over 15,000 applicants are medically rejected each year without applying for a waiver, with even more denied at the recruiter\u2019s door or self-selecting out from applying at all. At a time when the military is facing a recruiting crisis, shouldn\u2019t it be doing everything it can to bring in applicants who are ready and willing but currently unable to serve?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than 15,000 applicants per year rejected without a waiver appeal<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How many potential recruits is the military missing out on? According to a 2022 Accession Medical Standards Analysis and Research Activity report<\/a>, 1.35 million applicants received a physical at MEPS from 2016-2020. Of that population, 13-16% were medically disqualified, yet only 47-66% of disqualified applicants applied for a medical waiver<\/a>. By my calculations, from 2016-2020, as many as 85,000 applicants were rejected and did not apply for a medical waiver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why would an applicant not request a waiver? The answer comes down to incentives \u2014 and who actually does the paperwork. For most applicants, recruiters determine whether or not to submit for a waiver review. However, recruiters are evaluated by the total number of recruits they bring in, often based on monthly or yearly quotas. This disincentivizes them from prioritizing applicants who require waivers, which require more work, take more time, and may ultimately result in rejection. Additionally, recruiters are neither medical professionals nor empowered to evaluate an applicant holistically, which, in fact, is the intent of the waiver process. So, recruiters are unfortunately being put in the position of effectively making waiver decisions when they decide not to submit an applicant at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s take 2020 as a case study, when the military services saw the following numbers of applicants, disqualifications, and waivers based on AMSARA\u2019s 2022 Annual Report<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n