How to get reimbursed while working at a non DoD entity?

SSG(P) Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 31 Jul 2020 13:27:26 -0400

A few Soldiers and myself are helping out with Operation Warp Speed at a local blood bank. We were voluntold to help out which is fine because we have no in-house work commencing at the moment. My problem lies in whether we can get reimbursed for medical scrubs we purchased. Leadership told us to wear business casual but when you are working around blood donors, you don’t want their blood on your actual decent clothes you spent decent money on. 99% of the local workforce is in medical scrubs, why not blend in? After some digging around we found multiple DoD directives and memos in regards to working “on loan” to outside entities. After providing this information to our leadership they basically told us no way Jose.
*note: one of the Soldiers found out the local Guard unit has scrubs we could have had for free if we just made a call.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Jul 31 at 2020 1:42 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 31 Jul 2020 13:42:40 -0400

It's all going to come down to whether or not you were required to wear scrubs. If you were told business casual was acceptable and you chose to wear scrubs rather than risk getting blood on your clothes then, unfortunately,that is on you. The Army is going to look at it from the viewpoint of they are not going to reimburse you for the cost of something you were not required to have.

Response by Lt Col Jim Coe made Jul 31 at 2020 4:15 PM

Lt Col Jim Coe — Fri, 31 Jul 2020 16:15:39 -0400

If you were required by military authority to wear special clothing (scrubs) and you purchased them, then there is a possibility you might get reimbursed. If you bought the scrubs on your own initiative, which is what your post sounds like, then you're probably not going to get any money. Recommend you run this situation up your chain of command. There's probably a smart supply sergeant somewhere who might know how to get you reimbursed. BTW if the Government pays for the scrubs, then they own the scrubs, so don't plan on keeping them.

Response by SP5 Peter Keane made Jul 31 at 2020 5:03 PM

SP5 Peter Keane — Fri, 31 Jul 2020 17:03:45 -0400

So as an E-5 over 6, you are saying you can't afford 40 bucks for a couple of sets ? You need better money management skills.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 1 at 2020 12:26 AM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 01 Aug 2020 00:26:32 -0400

I can tell you a little bit about funding. Basically, you will not get reimbursed. If you were voluntold then it was not an official operation. Then needed volunteers and you unit basically committed some Soldiers. If this was something that your unit knew about early then they could have requested to order some scrubs or use a Government Purchase Card to buy scrubs. Even then it would very questionable to go with either of those methods. The Army doesn't have a mechanism to pay back Soldier for impact purchases outside of official travel or training. When you went on this detail you were not covered by any funding so there simply isn't any money to pay you. This is something that should have been explained or those wanting to buy them should have understood. If you were not told to buy them and then you figure you would just get the money back after you are done then it is a lapse in judgement.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 1 at 2020 1:35 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 01 Aug 2020 01:35:44 -0400

Typically these reimbursements require two things, a requirement and a lack of available resources. For instance, when I was a young SPC the unit paid for us to go to a Tactical EMT course in Savannah, GA. We had to drive ourselves there every day and were told we could put in a travel voucher for the mileage. So we put in our local voucher and it was denied because the BN had a TMP we could have used. So, the requirement was there but the resources were not lacking.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 1 at 2020 1:37 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 01 Aug 2020 01:37:40 -0400

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Aug 1 at 2020 1:42 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Sat, 01 Aug 2020 13:42:37 -0400

You have to fights.
A. Does your command eventually think it is mandatory to have scrubs.
B. If the command thinks A is true, what mechanisms do they have to reimburse you?

Response by CW4 Keith Dolliver made Aug 2 at 2020 5:57 AM

CW4 Keith Dolliver — Sun, 02 Aug 2020 05:57:20 -0400

Good luck getting reimbursed... As an alternative, have you looked into being authorized Civilian Clothing Allowance? If your duty is at least 15 days or longer within a 30 day period then Civilian Clothing Allowance can be authorized.

DoD FMR Volume 7A, Chapter 29
290503. Civilian Clothing Allowances for Officers and Enlisted Personnel. In addition to any other clothing allowance authorized, Service members (officer or enlisted) directed by competent authority to dress in civilian clothing more than half the time when performing official duty, as a military requirement, may be authorized a civilian clothing allowance. In accordance with 37 U.S.C. § 419, an officer is authorized a civilian clothing allowance only if his or her permanent duty station is outside the United States. During any period in which an enlisted member is on an assignment requiring the wear of civilian clothing, the applicable replacement allowance for uniform items continues to accrue. The Service Secretary or the Commandant of the Marine Corps may prescribe reduced civilian clothing allowances, as appropriate for their respective Service, for personnel serving under conditions where the full authorized civilian clothing allowances in Table 29-9 are not required.