Frequently Asked
Questions!
“Everything you wanted to know,
but were afraid to ask”!
1
What constitutes a Physical
Fitness Assessment (PFA)?
• Body Composition Assessment
(BCA)
• Height and Weight
• Taping (Standard)
• Physical Readiness Test (PRT)
• Flexibility
• Body Strength
• Endurance
2
What constitutes a PFA
failure?
• Below minimum score for PRT
• And/Or
• Exceeds body fat standards:
Age (years): 17-39
40-40+
DOD BCA
Exception
Male:
22%
23%
26%
Female:
33%
34%
36%
3
After 1st failure?
• Page 13 (enlisted) or LON (officers)
• Enrollment in Fitness Enhancement
Program (FEP)
• No promotion or frocking
until Mock PFA passed
4
After 2nd failure?
• Page 13 (enlisted) or LON (officers)
• Warning of Separation
• Enrollment in FEP
• No promotion or frocking until Mock
PFA passed
5
After 3rd failure?
• Commanding Officer Will Start
ADSEP Procedures
• Not Eligible For Reenlistment
• Not Eligible For Advancement
6
Other instructions that may
impact a career, promotion,
transfer, ADSEP, etc.?
• DODINST 1308.3
• BUPERSINST
• SECNAVINST
5214.2B
• OPNAVINST
6110.1H
• NAVADMINS
• MILPERS MANUAL
ARTICLE 1910-170
•
•
•
•
1430.16E
SECNAVINST
1420.1A
COMMAND POLICY
USC TITLE 10
And Many, Many,
More!!!
7
FITREP marks or admin actions for a
Sailor with 3 failures in 4-years?
• Special Evaluation/FITREP:
• 1.0 in Military Bearing
• “SP” Overall
• “Not Recommended” for Retention or
Advancement
• Plus:
•
•
•
•
Removed from any selection board consideration
Loss of Warfare Pin
Good Conduct Medal eligibility
Gold badges, etc.
• Applies to Enlisted and Officers (as per
MILPERSMAN)
8
Does denial of promotion/
advancement/frocking and
advancement exam participation?
• 1st or 2nd PFA failure:
• Can participate in the March and September Exams
with CO’s permission
• To be promoted or advanced, pass mock PFA prior to
the promotion cycle limiting date (Per BUPERSINST
1430.16E (enlisted) & SECNAVINST1420.1A (officers)
• 3rd PFA failure in 4 years
• Not eligible to be promoted or compete for
advancement (take exam), or go before any selection
board
9
Promotion Cycle Limiting
Dates For Enlisted Personnel
Pay Grade
Exam Date
Limiting Date
E-4/5/6
Feb/Mar
31 Dec
E-4/5/6
Aug/Sep
30 Jun
E-7
Jan/Feb
31 Aug
E-8/9
N/A
30 Jun
10
Information on mandatory ADSEP
processing?
• Enlisted:
• Review MILPERSMAN
• Contact COMNAVPERSCOM (PERS-832)
(901) 874-4433.
• Officers:
• COs initiate separation processing through
COMNAVPERSCOM (PERS-834) – referencing
SECNAVINST 1920.6C (3)(1)(a) and OPNAVINST
6110.1H, outlining the PFA failures
• COs issue letter of notification to Sailor for PFA
failures
• If COMNAVPERSCOM directs separation, PERS-834
will:
• Notify a probationary officer, who can respond, or
• Direct a non-probationary officer to a board of inquiry
(BOI)
11
Separations (cont.)
• 14 Days to start ADSEP process
• Request Readiness waiver first, if
disapproved, start separation or
ADSEP proceedings
• Ensure Personnel are aware:
• Involuntarily separated personnel for
PFA failures must pay back unearned
bonuses, fees for specialized training,
and all existing indebtedness per
DODFMR
12
Multiple PFA failures and PCS
orders?
• OPNAVINST 6110.1H has no
restrictions on transferring members with
PFA failures
• Detailers work closely with the Physical
Readiness Office when making
assignment decisions
• Personnel, who have three or more
failures in the past four years and have
failed the most recent PFA, will not be
transferred
• NAVADMIN 277/08
13
Policy for over 18 years of
service or retirement eligible
with 3 or more PFA failures?
• Any personnel with 18+ years of
service are subject to ADSEP
processing based on three or more
PFA failures in the past four years
• However, they may request to
• Transfer to the Fleet Reserve, or
• Retire at the earliest convenience of
the government
14
Retirement (cont.)
• Can submit request to retire up to 24 months
prior to their 20 year point:
• “Requesting retirement due to multiple PFA Failures
as per OPNAV N-135”
• More than 20 years of active duty service can
request to retire immediately:
• “Requesting retirement at the earliest convenience to
the government due to multiple PFA Failures as per
OPNAV N135”
• If a person doesn’t submit a request for
retirement, ADSEP processing will continue
• POC for Fleet Reserve and retirement requests
is PERS-823, (901) 874-2311
15
DOD BCA exception rule?
• COs may waive the BCA
• Up to26% for males and 36% for females if:
• Score an overall “excellent" or higher on the PRT,
with no single event scored below "good"
• Present a professional, military appearance as
determined by the CO
• Cannot be medically waived from any PRT event
• Approved waivers must be forwarded to
OPNAV N-135 to change BCA in PRIMS to
"within standards“
16
What are the requirements for a
BCA Waiver?
• Only granted in 6 month increments for:
• Non-elective surgery to the area to be
measured (i.e. tracheotomy, or
appendectomy, or caesarian)
• Cosmetic surgeries (i.e. liposuction, tucks, or
implants) are not grounds for a BCA Waiver
unless deemed essential by BUMED
• Medications (i.e. cancer) or where the med
(i.e. steroids) is known to cause weight gain
• Pregnancy or IVF treatment, and aftercare
followings the delivery / termination of the
pregnancy
17
BCA Waiver (cont.)
• May only be approved for six months
• Must be signed by a specialist and
counter-signed by the appropriate
Medical Department Head. If not
available, the CO or OIC must sign
• Cannot be signed by a Corpsman or
Civilian Doctor. A Civilian Doctor can
make a recommendation for a BCA
waiver; signed as above
• Inability to exercise is NOT a valid
reason for a BCA Waiver!!!
18
I have a person at my
command who is permanently
waived from the PFA or PRT?
• No, you don’t!
• There is no such thing as a permanent
medical waiver
• Forward all information to OPNAV 135
for review and to BUPERS for evaluation
• To date, none that we have received for
review have proven valid
19
I have a person who has a Light
Duty Chit for 6 months and gets
one before every PFA cycle, what
action should I take?
• A Light Duty (LD) Chit is only good for a
max 30 days at a time, extendable to a
max of 90 days. The person should be
placed in Limited Duty (LIMDU) Status,
complete with a 105/0054 Detailing code.
• LIMDU is only good for 6 months,
extendable to 12 months, but can be
extended by a Physical Examination
Board (PEB) to 18 months total for the
entire career
20
LD/LIMDU Continued
• A person who has failed a PFA cycle
immediately prior to being placed in a
LIMDU or LD status (including
Pregnancy) is not eligible for promotion
or frocking until they successfully
complete an Official PFA (OPNAVINST
6110.1H, (Encl 8, page 12, para 19C))
• Additionally, all administrative actions
incurred prior to the diagnosis remain in
effect
21
LD/LIMDU Continued
• A person who is medically waived from
the PFA two or more times for the same
reason should be referred to medical for
a MEB
• This is at the Commanding Officers
discretion based on their determination
of the impact of readiness and good
order and conduct
• The Commanding Officer has final
authority over the approval of all medical
waivers
22
LD/LIMDU Continued
• Personnel who are placed in a
LD/LIMDU status must have the MDR
complete a SF600 which is turned in,
retained by the CFL and entered into
PRIMS
• Personnel who are placed in a LIMDU
status are required to be entered into the
detailing system as a 105/0054 Code for
tracking, detailing, and readiness
purposes
• This is not optional and may warrant
transfer to another command!
23
I have a Sailor who is on Light Duty for
2 weeks as defined on a Light Duty Chit.
Can I have them take the PFA once that
period has passed and Medical has
cleared them for PT?
• Yes, your PFA cycle is technically 6
months in duration
• Once a person has been cleared by
Medical, they can be required to take the
PFA for that cycle
• Use your monthly mock PFAs for FEP as
an opportunity to catch “Stragglers”,
those who were TAD, on leave, or have
been cleared from a medical issue
24
I have a person who refuses to
take the PFA or doesn’t show up
for the PRT or FEP, can I count
them as a Failure?
• No, a Sailor who fails to be at his
appointed place of duty for a PFA
or FEP Training is not to be
counted as a PFA failure, but
should be considered to be in an
Unauthorized Absence (UCMJ-ART
86, UA) status and should be
treated as such by their CO or OIC
25
Recommended actions for “No
Shows”
• CO issues a NAVPERS 1070/613
(page 13) directing the member to
be at their appointed place of duty
• Make them take the Mock PFA
• If the Sailor fails to comply with this
direction, the CO or OIC should
take action IAW the UCMJ
• Again, a Sailor missing a PFA does
not constitute a PFA Failure
26
How long does my command have
to apply for a Readiness Waiver?
• CO has 14 days from the date of third
failure to request a readiness waiver
• Ensure command is in compliance with
the requirement criteria for a Readiness
Waiver to avoid possible embarrassment
27
If a person discovers an error
with their PRIMS file, how can
is it corrected?
• Within the current PFA cycle, CFL can
make corrections to PRIMS
• Greater than 6 months, command must
submit a letter of Corrections to OPNAV
N-135, requesting correction.
• PRIMS may not be changed without
approval once a PFA cycle is complete
28
Does a person’s PFA results follow
or apply if they transfer to or from
the Navy Reserve or if they are
selected for a commissioning
program?
• Yes
29
Regulations for when and if we
should have the PFA during and/or
following deployment?
• Refer to NAVADMIN 247/09 for guidance
• If you provided at least 10 weeks notice of the
PFA dates and your CO feels the crew is ready,
go for it
• If the CO feels that, due to operational
commitments, a PFA would not be feasible then
that is their call
• Participant status is "Dep/Op“
• Highly recommend completing the BCA
• FITREP/Evaluation
• Mark N/XX in Block 20
• ..."no PFA completed this reporting period due to
operational commitments..." in the remarks section
• Keep a memo for the record
30
Command is on deployment, plans
to waive PFA. Do BCA’s count?
• YES, the PFA is comprised of the PRT
and the BCA, you can conduct one
without the other, DOD BCA Exception
will not apply
• CO can direct you to conduct a BCA to
determine who may need assistance or
placement in FEP, however this cannot
be used for administrative actions such
as FITREPS, or Selection Boards
31
“Bad Day Rule"?
• Discuss with CO while planning the PFA cycle –
CO makes the call
• Inform all personnel of the following:
• Claiming a “bad day” means retesting for both the
•
•
•
•
BCA and PRT
Anyone may claim a “Bad Day”, whether they passed
or failed
The “Final Date” of testing that a person may claim a
“Bad Day”
If a person claims a “Bad Day” and doesn’t show or is
medically waived for the retest, the first score stands
as that person’s PFA final result
The “Bad Day” rule is at the discretion of the CO/OIC
and is not a right
32
Fitness Enhancement
Program (FEP) Assignment?
•
At the discretion of the CO/OIC/CMC
• FEP is not a punishment, it is to assist
in establishing a healthy lifestyle and
prevent damage to a career
• Three ways to enroll in FEP:
• Do poorly or fail a PFA
• Command Directed
• Self Referral
33
Command PRP Policy
• What about making time during working
•
•
•
•
hours for FEP?
What happens if someone doesn’t show
up for FEP?
How will you deal with watch standers,
shift workers, or those recently returned
from deployment?
What PRT options are allowed?
Is there a limit on how many times a
person can claim a bad day?
34
Are there any other questions
you desire to ask?
Take the Shot!!
35