How do I get my Army medical records to submit a VA claim?

Col. Thompson,
I work with the VA in Tampa and here is what I advise to you and all other Veterans in your situation.

Instead of using e-vetrecs or http://www.archives.gov to get medical records for Veterans, a faster way for the Veterans to get them is to download a Standard Form 180, complete it, and then fax it to: [login to see] (Dept. VA Records Mgmt. Center).

If you go through e-vetrecs, like the website tells you to do, it is taking about 3-4 months for the Veteran to get a letter from National Personnel Records Center, telling them to do the above.

Once you have faxed the completed Form 180, you can call Dept. VA Records Mgmt. Center at [login to see] , a few days later to follow up, if you’d like.

Good Luck and let me know if there is anything else I might be able to help you with.

Kevin Vincent
Community Employment Coordinator
James A. Haley VA Hospital
Tampa, FL

My VA representative helped me get my records....all I needed was a copy of my DD Form 214...took it to the VA rep and filled out a request form and he sent it in....took about 3 and a half weeks and it arrived in the mail one day.

COL Jon Thompson DoD has revamped the process to access our records. Up until June 2015 I had no trouble accessing my military records including health records posted to my HRC account. AKO now only can be accessed with CAC or equivalent card.
THose of us who are retired, etc without a CAC card need a DS logon.
Last year while going through the process to get access to MyhealtheVet as a premium user so that I could get and receive secure emails, I registered for access to DoD websites at:
https://esd-crm.csd.disa.mil/app/answers/detail/a_id/292
You can also request a copy of your military records and DD214 by visiting:
http://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records/
I posted a screen shot of the websites accessible through the DoD Websites accepting DS Logon
[https://myaccess.dmdc.osd.mil/identitymanagement/profile/home.do]
The place to access your military records including any posted medical records is the U.S. Army Human Resources Portal link - right side of listed sites. I got there by clicking - took a minute or so for me. COL Mikel J. Burroughs, LTC Stephen Franke

COL Jon Thompson Please reach out to Kim Bolen RN CCM ACM on RP through a connection request. She may have some answers for you. Connect and then send a message. I'm not positive, but she may be able to assist or get yuo going int he right direction. I would also think contacting HRC or your last Reserve unit for guidance on where those could be obtained. I'm sure there are some really sharp Human Resource personnel here on RP that can help as well.

If you are a member of MyHealthVet (https://www.myhealth.va.gov) there is a link provided to "ebenefits" (https://www.ebenefits.va.gov/ebenefits/homepage) and from there you can request a copy of your medical records. If you exited the military prior to 2008, your records are not available as they are archived. I called my local American Legion's office per "eBenefits" instruction and they can either provide you with a local Veterans Affairs office number. I was instructed to just show up to the local veterans affairs office approx 30 min prior to them opening and once seen by a rep, they can request your records and they will actually mail you a copy of your entire medical file.

If there are records AFTER 2008, they should be accessible via the eBenefits website.

Do you have paper copies of your medical records COL Jon Thompson?
AKO stores significant records for you accessible via the HRC retiree website. For me it is the Reserve side. While it does not contain all of your records you will find many of them stored along with your orders. One humorous thing for me was that when the date was unsure HRC assigned 1900 for many of my dates, since there shouldn't be any before 1972 when I was being considered for Annapolis I found that humorous.
I recommend downloading anything related to medical records from your retiree AKO page and save to some useful place. This would include military profiles, records of treatment, SF88 and other medical physical documents, etc.

Sir,
You can submit a request through the National Archives. However, the VA "should" have direct access to them as a sister agency, and I believe there is a checkbox on one of the forms which authorizes them to pull from them.

http://www.archives.gov/st-louis/military-personnel/other-medical-records.html

There's a link on the page above.

Sir. I just went through that. I've got the form and address at my office that you need to send your request to.

When you submit an intent to file, what that does is actually preserves the date of claim as if you had submitted the entire claim that day and gives you up to the 1 year mark to file and substantiate your claim. So no matter what else you do, or manage to get your hands on FILE THE CLAIM before the deadline, submit whatever Injuries, Illness's and disabilities you believe are service connected and the burden of proof initially falls on the VA to make all possible attempts to attain your medical records.
Anything that is in your medical records the VA does get, you do not have to supply it!
Since the late 1990's most Mil Med records have been electronic, but realistically when in the field or deployment that doesn't realistically happen. you get patched up and sent back to where you came often with only a sick call slip or nothing at all and the medical note doesn't make it back to your command or your Med Rec's.
A couple of different ways are possible to get around this:
1st what is called lay-evidence is buddy statements from ideally 2 or more individuals that were with you in the time when you suffered said injury illness or disease and that can be used to verify the event.
Next are more round about ways to get the info or prove something happened at all, these at least open the door to make the VA have to look deeper- If you were signed out or any documentation was submitted to your command that would have had to of been recorded on the daily logs or forwarded to higher command for accountability-They still exist, no matter how much time has past.
You can also reach out to your previous command and see if they still have you Med Rec's, maybe they hadn't forwarded them yet and just have them sitting in a file. Check with the unit, ARCOM, up the chain till someone says they were forwarded correctly.
I have seen original records sent to the service member instead of an ARCOM, NGB or DA.
If you know what medical command treated you-TMC or field, again they have to have recorded that you were treated and must retain those records, at a a minimum a sign in log with condition you came in for.
Any condition that an LOD (line of duty) was completed for, would also have a copy in your 201 file, and higher headquarters signs off on them and must keep a file copy also.
If you were treated within 1 year of discharge/release from active duty anywhere (civilian), those records can be submitted which demonstrate the likelihood of the condition in service.
Remember not everything is black and white! Use the back door when needed!
Just make sure to file your VA 526-claim for benefits before that 1 year mark or you lose the earlier effective date of when you submitted the intent to file. List anything you believe is related to service, if you don't have the evidence now, first see if they come up with it or they will ask you to supply it, either way you are not losing that earlier date of claim.
Lastly if you just want to get a copy of your electronic Mil Med Rec's you can try going to a local military installation, visit their TMC/Medical Center/Hospital, whatever and simply ask for a copy. There is no guarantee they will easily print them off for you but depending on how long you have been out and if you explain to them your situation and that you need them for your medical benefits it may work out. I have known many people to get them this way. This again will only contain the electronic records not the early paper records unless yours were lucky enough to be scanned in and these the VA likely have anyway. GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!
ADVICE to anyone getting out--Get copies of all your records before your final out processing!

You should go see your county veterans service officer. They can file a fully developed claim for you, as the VA is responsible for obtaining you're active military medical records. Never file a claim on your own, let a professional county representative do it for free!