Fast Facts 2008 April

April 2008 Fast Facts Point of Contact: CDR McLean David.McLean@med.navy.mil 301-295-1217

1) Tuition: This is the process for payment of tuition: a.Contract is generated for payment of Student’s tuition b.Student’s term begins c.School sends MDAD an invoice for tuition d.If invoice matches contract to the penny, the invoice is processed for payment e.If invoice does not match (to the penny), invoice is rejected and/or contract is modified f.Once contract and invoice agree, payment is processed and sent to Defense finance and Accounting System (DFAS) g.DFAS posts payment within 30 days of request.

Steps c through e can be repeated multiple times and vary in length. It is a laborious, tedious, and complex process that MDAD has been attempting to simplify and streamline for the past 2 years. Students should not need to acquire loans to pay for tuition and fees. If your school is demanding payment, refer them to MDAD. We have educational service agreements with the school which state we will pay for our students. If late fees or interest accrue, MDAD pays those as well. If your school is withholding financial aid, contact us immediately at OH@med.navy.mil. We will contact the school and settle the situation. We can usually accomplish this within 24 hours.

2) Stipend/Bonus: When the HPSP program was conceptualized and written into law, the stipend was created to offset additional educational expenses and not to be a living wage. The amount of the stipend is set at the Department of Defense level and not by MDAD. If a student lives in a high cost area or has a family, it will not cover living expenses and students may need to assume loans to cover the difference. Congress authorized the total stipend to be UP TO $30,000 per year, but the funding did not accompany the authorization. In July 2008, the stipend will increase to $1907 per month. No additional increases have been programmed by the Department of Defense. The Critical Skills Accession Bonus (CSAB) for medical and dental HPSP students applies to students who entered the program after 1 October 2006. MDAD regrets that it is unable to provide these funds to students who entered prior to that date. The CSAB is $20,000 and paid on the Benefit Start Date of the student. Because DFAS had no other data field available to pay, the CSAB appears in the FLPP field (Foreign Language Proficiency Pay) of the Leave and Earnings Statement and shows up as two payments of $9000 and one payment of $2000. The CSAB is considered taxable income and about 25.5% federal income taxes are taken off the top before it is deposited into your account.

3) Pay Day! Pay days are the 1st and the 15th of every month. You are paid for the days preceeding pay day. All students should understand the basics of what they are paid. Here is a synopsis:

a.Stipend - $1907 per month (as of 1 July 08) divided into 2 payments distributed on the 1st and 15th of the month. Taxes are withheld based on the W-4 form submitted at entry into the program. If there are changes to your status, please submit a new W-4. Stipend stops when a student begins an Annual Training (AT) period and resumes upon completion. It also stops at graduation. Graduates receive NO PAY for the time between graduation and the start of internship or the start of their first active duty assignment. Plan for it. b.While on Annual Training a student receives the following pays: Basic Pay - $2555.70 per month: Unless a student has prior service, he/she is paid as an O-1 with less than 2 years of active service for the entire AT period. Students in the program are not given longevity, and thus stay at this same level for the entire time they are in the program. Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS) – $202.76 per month: This is non-taxable and paid while on AT. a.Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH): There are two types of BAH, BAH I and BAH II. Most students are authorized BAH I while on AT. The exception is students without dependants staying in government quarters while on AT. The current pay system is unable to pay students BAH I and pays BAH II. At the end of an AT, MDAD calculates the difference and submits a request to DFAS for payment. Examples of BAH Payments (all values per month):

Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (Erie Campus)

On Travel At ODS School Orders

Orders < 30 days With Dependants $900 (BAH I) $900 (BAH I) $900 (BAH I) $767.40 (BAH II) Without Dependants $13.20 (Partial BAH) $13.20 (Partial BAH) $702 (BAH I) $565.50 (BAH II)

Washington D.C. (Georgetown/George Washington/Howard)

On Travel At ODS School Orders Orders < 30 days With Dependants $1878 (BAH I) $1878 (BAH I) $1878 (BAH I) $767.40 (BAH II) Without Dependants $13.20 (Partial BAH) $13.20 (Partial BAH)

$1580 (BAH I) $565.50 (BAH II)

c.Family Separation Allowance – If you are married and separated for more than 30 days from your family (i.e. Officer Development School (ODS)) you will receive $250 per month. You must have claimed dependents (via submission of a NAVPERS 1070/602 (Page 2) in order to receive this allowance.

If you receive money that you cannot explain or understand, contact MDAD immediately.  Errors can and do happen.  Do not spend unexpected money until you have clarified its source.  

3) Records - Lost paperwork occurs. Regular mail to MDAD is unreliable and slow at best because it goes to a mail room and has infrequent delivery. E-mail to OH@med.navy.mil is the best option. This allows you to keep the originals should you need them again. The annual verification form was changed in 2007 and does not require a visit to a health care provider. You need to inform MDAD of any changes in health status. HIV status mustbe updated every 2 years. If there is no convenient DoD clinic or reserve center, you may have it done at student health and submit for reimbursement.

Miscellaneous Notes 1) If you need to make changes to your AT orders, do not try to do this via NROWS. Contact Ms. Carr at Shirley.Carr@med.navy.mil or Mr. Whitfield at Vaughn.Whitfield@med.navy.mil and they will make the appropriate modifications.

2) If you want to change your flight, contact the airline directly. Government tickets are full fare tickets and can be changed at will. (as long as the new flight is the same cost or less)