EFMP (Exceptional Family Member Program)

[Guest PistolPete21]

If a special request falls through, meaning it wasn't in the drop, should one request the aircraft/assignment by other means, i.e. hardship? How long would the process take?

The hardship would be for my wife's medical issues and we want to be close to family for assistance. I don't want to create waves in the system, but at the same time, I don't wan't to be called home from a future deployment because this all could've been avoided if I filed for hardship out of UPT.

Any advice would be appreciated...

PP

[Guest rotorhead]

Hardship is a tough one. The questions that must be asked include, but are not limited to:

Is the "hardship" reason a family member that is your official dependent?

Is the hardship reason a disease with a finite term (like dying of cancer with 8 months to live, or is it an indefinite term like alzheimers?

Why can't the hardship reason be looked after by other children?

Why can't the hardship reason be moved to you, vs. you moved to them?

It sucks, but the big company has to scrutinize like that, or dirtbags will take advantage of the system, and ruin it for the real hardship cases.

[Guest PistolPete21]

The "hardship" has to do with my spouse. We have 2 children with one on the way. She's been restricted to bed rest for the duration of the pregnancy. My mind would be at ease if I knew my family had help from extended family.

[Guest rotorhead]

My heart truly goes out to you, but at the risk of sounding cold, I think the assignment folks will say:

If your wife has a condition that is NOT treatable/monitorable at the base (or town) of Base X, we will talk.

If your wife has a condition that IS treatable/monitorable at the base (or town) of Base X, you'll take what we give you, and you'll like it.

In other words, there is NO WAY they are going to start entertaining "I'd like to go to Base Y to be closer to my hometown/folks." That's a Pandora's box they will not open. Everyone wants to go to Base Y (some certain location) for some reason: better flying, better weather, closer to home, farther from home, better feminina population, better job for the wife, etc.

[ 22. May 2005, 16:13: Message edited by: rotorhead ]

[M2]

PP21

If you wife is disabled/handicapped, then she should be enrolled in EFMP. As such, that will dictate where you can and cannot go for your next assignment. I know, I have a son who is autistic and is EFMP enrolled. It was one of the reasons I wanted to go to San Antonio for my final assignment before I retire, so he could get the help he needed.

Here is all the info you need on EFMP. Note enrollement is mandatory and required immediately upon identification of a special need for all active duty service members with family members with special medical and/or educational needs. Also note it considers those needs during the personnel assignment process, pecially when approving family members for accompanied travel to overseas locations.

In the Air Force, the Special Needs staff are located in the Military Treatment Facility (MTF) only. The EFMP Re-Assignments Branch is a personnel function. Family Support Center staff provides Family Life Education, Information and Referral and Personal Finance Management services but do not have a designated Coordinator.

The Air Force Special Needs Identification and Assignment Coordination (SNIAC) process identifies eligible U.S. Air Force families with special medical and/or education requirements and helps those families obtain required services. This SNIAC process ensures those families have access to necessary services upon reassignment, whether CONUS or OCONUS.

The SNIAC process identifies sponsors whose family members have special needs for reassignment purposes. The SNIAC process assists the Military Personnel Flight (MPF) in updating the Assignment Limitation Code Q that is assigned to the sponsor for the purpose of ensuring availability of medical and/or educational services upon PCS. Therefore, SNIAC enrollment is mandatory for active duty sponsors whose family members meet enrollment criteria established by DoD and U.S. Air Force policy. The SNIAC helps families connect with medical and educational programs with the goals of increasing family self-sufficiency and improving family self-advocacy skills.

The Air Force Special Needs Coordinator (SNC) and Family Member Relocation Clearance Coordinator (FMRCC) are typically located in the Life Skills Support Center and/or Family Advocacy office at the Medical Treatment Facility (MTF).

More info on their web site.

Cheers! M2

[The Kayla]

Hi Everyone :) Long time to type! I hope everyone is well and enjoying life!

I would like some information on EFMP (I SWEAR! I searched for this topic, and I got nada!).

I had a baby boy (don't die of shock!) in September! He was born with one kidney and has kidney reflux. :-(

1) Would this mark him as EFMP?

2) We are/were trying for OCONUS (England/Germany/Hawaii)--would his EFMP take our chances off the table?

Thank you!

Kayla :-)

[Toro]

Kayla,

First off, welcome back and congratulations! M2 gave a very good summary of EFMP a while back (though that last link is now dead), but here's some add-on.

I had a baby boy (don't die of shock!) in September! He was born with one kidney and has kidney reflux. :-(

1) Would this mark him as EFMP?

Definitely. You can be put on EFMP status for something as minor as a child with ADHD. In the end, it is the AF trying to make sure that you will have adequate care for your family, but you'll find that the paperwork and hold ups can be a MASSIVE pain in the ass, so do everything you can to lead-turn this and be proactive (i.e. don't trust the EFMP office to have a sense of urgency).

2) We are/were trying for OCONUS (England/Germany/Hawaii)--would his EFMP take our chances off the table?

Not necessarily - it all depends on the facilities that are available where you're going. Part of the reason EFMP is a pain in the ass is that the medical facility (specifically, the EFMP coordinator) where you are currently stationed needs to coordinate with the medical facility where you are going and ensure that they have the right type of clinics, therapists, facilities, etc., that your son needs. We just came from Germany, where - in addition to a full base clinic at Ramstein, they have Landstuhl Regional Medical Center - the largest US medical facility in Europe. I do know that England (Lakenheath) has a full-up hospital on base (as opposed to the clinics most bases have), so that isn't necessarily out of the question either.

I would suggest you call the EFMP office at Pease and see if they can determine the possibility going to either of those three locations.

[Shakermaker]

Definitely. You can be put on EFMP status for something as minor as a child with ADHD. In the end, it is the AF trying to make sure that you will have adequate care for your family, but you'll find that the paperwork and hold ups can be a MASSIVE pain in the ass, so do everything you can to lead-turn this and be proactive (i.e. don't trust the EFMP office to have a sense of urgency).

Pile on to this...

I'm in the same boat right now. Living in the south has created some medical issues for two of my kids, who are now on EFMP. If you want to get something done in a "respectable" time-frame you will more than likely need to beat down the EFMP coordinator's door on a daily basis until you get what you need. Also, don't rely on them to do what needs to be done to ensure that your gaining base actually has the facilities locally you need for your dependent's conditions. Call their EFMP coordinator yourself and make sure!! I have heard of several instances where a family PCS'd only to find out that their new base didn't have the facilities that they were told by the EFMP coord at the departing base. Do your homework, ask A LOT of questions, and don't get discouraged because the process is definitely a PITA.

[afnav]

All good information here. I'll just add my experience.

I just retired, but I have a son on the autistic spectrum, and was on EFMP for four years. When we were in Louisiana, it was miserable trying to get care for him, since a lot of it was dealing with the local healthcare system. To be blunt, it sucks.

That all changed when we came to Nebraska. Between dealing with Triwest, the Offutt clinic, and the state agencies, our son has made a dramatic improvement. We were stunned at how much the state agencies practically fell over themselves with services for us. We have high taxes, but I can say they are worth it.

As far as going overseas, this is a mixed bag. The way Big Blue gets around it is by leaving your dependents stateside and sending you on a remote or 365. Being in EFMP does not shield you at all from long-duration separation.

Good luck!

[The Kayla]

I apologize for sounding stupid for asking this:

Would a Guard base even have an EFMP office? I guess I could e-mail the Shirt and ask him! Can I enroll Gunnar in EFMP, or does Dave need to? Dave is currently deployed, so it would have to wait till he returned home, if that is the case.

Although, wouldn't we go to Portsmouth NSY? Since that is where we go for Medical?

Thank you all for the information!

--Kayla

Edited December 18, 2011 by The Kayla

[Kikuchiyo]

Let me specifically address coming to Germany. Toro is right that there's a lot of capacity here at Ramstein. However, I manage all rated officer assignments here. We lose nearly 25% of assignments of rated guys to staff here at Ramstein due to the local facilities being unable or unwilling to handle their EFMP situations. The process is that the assigned base EFMP office determines if they can handle your case. If they can't, they have to check with the other local facilities - in our case Landstuhl (LRMC)

Unfortunatey, Ramstein has only a clinic with no specialists, so their answer to the first question is almost always no. Then they ask LRMC, whose answer is usually that they're a little busy treating wounded coming out of downrange, and they don't have capacity for more AF dependents. The only realistic way to get the ruling changed is if your doctor changes the diagnosis or required treatment. Then you start the whole process over again.

Lakenheath/Mildenhall, on the other hand, have a huge AF (vice Army) hospital, and they're not a transit point for the wounded. Their EFMP office is more likely to be able to handle special cases.

[Toro]

Would a Guard base even have an EFMP office? I guess I could e-mail the Shirt and ask him! Can I enroll Gunnar in EFMP, or does Dave need to? Dave is currently deployed, so it would have to wait till he returned home, if that is the case.

Although, wouldn't we go to Portsmouth NSY? Since that is where we go for Medical?

It probably depends on the size of the base. The Shirt should know if they have an EFMP office, but I wouldn't spend too much time waiting for him to research it. If you don't get an answer within a day or so, start running it down yourself. And you should have no issue enrolling your son in EFMP yourself.

[Guest]

I apologize for sounding stupid for asking this:

Would a Guard base even have an EFMP office? I guess I could e-mail the Shirt and ask him! Can I enroll Gunnar in EFMP, or does Dave need to? Dave is currently deployed, so it would have to wait till he returned home, if that is the case.

Although, wouldn't we go to Portsmouth NSY? Since that is where we go for Medical?

Thank you all for the information!

--Kayla

I'm not sure what unit you're looking at but I can say the availablity of assistance for AD dependents on most ANG bases is very limited. It sounds like you will be in the TRICARE North region. It has been a couple years but they were not easy to deal with up front. My wife got pretty good at dealing with the system on her own. She knows the right things to say as she has extensive experience and education when dealing with special needs. It got to the point that she had a list of direct numbers to people in the TRICARE North system and she worked it by name with specific individuals by calling them direct. It was arduous.

[The Kayla]

Kiku: Thank you for the information!

Toro: I'll send the shirt an email, he is pretty good at getting back to me (I used to be the Key Spouse, so we're on first name terms!) :) I'll also call PNSY, and see what the have to say, and depending on how THAT goes, I'll call Hanscom AFB :)

Rainman: Dealing with Tricare in general is a bitch. I had to deal with Tricare South... they were not much better!

Oh! You guys keep saying "You need to.." "You should.." etc etc.. does the "You" go to me, or Dave? I don't want to be that spouse that oversteps boundaries and does stuff that Dave is supposed to do. Dave should be home sometime in January, but, he's on a list to PCS this summer, and he's on the list for a 365 due to his TIS---err something like that.

Now, we're just in the waiting game for orders to either PCS or him to deploy for the 365.

[Kikuchiyo]

Kayla,

"You" means "ya'll." If he's deployed, and it's something you can do, go ahead and do it. Enrolling him in EFMP is something that shold be done ASAP regardless of who does it.

He's probably on the vulnerable list for a 365 due to time in service and time since last short tour (if any). But once he returns from a regular deployment, he's protected for 1 yr from an Indeterminate TDY (iTDY) aka a 365. AFI 36-2110 Chapter 5.

Assignment notifications for the Summer cycle will come out around March for RNTLDs between June and Sep.

[The Kayla]

Thank you! :)

[The Kayla]

OK, so if anyone goes to PEASE (or is at PEASE), and needs this information:

The POC for EFMP is at Hanscom. You can't go to the shipyard because they don't speak "Air Force" as I was told.

[The Kayla]

Well, fvck. Our son's EFMP paperwork was denied.

Anyone have any experience with this, or has been in this situation?

[Spartacus]

Well, fvck. Our son's EFMP paperwork was denied.

Anyone have any experience with this, or has been in this situation?

I have personally dealt with this. There are just more hoops to jump through now. Send me a PM if you want to hear more details etc about how to deal with it.

[Fuzz]

About the best place I could find for this. Not sure if there's anybody on here with autistic kids but it doesn't sound like this has been widely disseminated.

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2013/07/16/tricares-new-autism-policy-raises-concerns.html

[HU&W]

About the best place I could find for this. Not sure if there's anybody on here with autistic kids but it doesn't sound like this has been widely disseminated.

https://www.military....s-concerns.html

Good read. Thanks. Whomever wrote this policy is obviously trying to apply occupational therapy standards to Autism. It doesn't work that way. Hopefully they revoke this quickly or congress gets involved.

[17D_guy]

Anyone know how to get of the EFMP? Ex-wife had the boy diagnosed and TriCare docs I've talked to since have said negative, just a speech delay. I've spoken to the reps at a couple locations and they all said it was "impossible".

[HU&W]

It all starts with the PCM recommendation, which is obviously much easier to do with an on-base pediatrician. Militaryonesource is a good place to start reading and learning.

[Boxhead]

Anyone know how to get of the EFMP? Ex-wife had the boy diagnosed and TriCare docs I've talked to since have said negative, just a speech delay. I've spoken to the reps at a couple locations and they all said it was "impossible".

Have you chatted with the EFMP folks in the clinic? Here, they are looking for reasons to get folks off EFMP. EFMP tends to be one of those bureaucratic "squeaky wheel" type programs. Go stand on some desks. Every day. Till they do what you want. Break them down. That Q Code is one medical O-6's signature away from going away forever.

[disgruntledemployee]

Anyone know how to get of the EFMP? Ex-wife had the boy diagnosed and TriCare docs I've talked to since have said negative, just a speech delay. I've spoken to the reps at a couple locations and they all said it was "impossible".

A letter from your primary family doc is the golden ticket to move the buerocratic burocratic bwerocratic buereocratic crap, paper pushing weenie machine (PPWM) and disenroll.

Years ago I was in EFMP. And while it sounds great in principle, it is woefully insufficient in many areas. The only thing it does is keep you from PCSing to a place where care may not be available, in the AF's view, not yours. So if you've got a sweet assignment to someplace, say Hawaii, and you got everything lined up for the proper docs and specialties, the EFMP PPWM can cancel it.

After many frustrations with a lack of known resources, the wife gathered quite a list of people, places, websites, orgs, etc. She tried giving it to the EFMP office and they stiff armed saying they couldn't accept, long line of bullshit, and said to give to Family Support. They did the same. We grew beyond the abilities of the EFMP program and decided to get out. They held up my assignment and it was easier to disenroll than to make them realize we had it figured out and didn't need them. On a side note, the Marines have the model program. The PCS piece is still there, but they actually help families with resources, orgs, facilities, programs, etc.

Out