.jpg)
While it may not be Y2K, the internet has done some crazy things. Including military record information disappearing from military databases.
TSP, the military retirement system, is managed online. The service member indicates what type of split of money they want in each funding type. The service member can also identify the beneficiary of the account if the service member passes before TSP is available. This and other information like a home address and email address were wiped from the TSP database without notification of its members. It did not go across the entire system, but many service members found that all the beneficiaries were wiped from their accounts.
The Army introduced a new human resources platform, the Integrated Personnel and Pay System-Army, or IPPS-A. The system rollout also had issues with glitches leading to data removal. The Army has asked that every soldier log in to check and verify their information. Any issues can be reported within the online program by adding a personnel action request. Any platform issues can be noted through a help ticket.
The Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System, DEERS, is a system utilized to track who has access to military bases and benefits, including the healthcare system TRICARE. DEERS had an update in January of 2023, and many service members were booted from the system, including their family members. Service members had to submit marriage certificates and birth certificates that were previously in the system to DEERS to have the family members added back in and their eligibility dates adjusted.
Within the Army, their system also removed award or promotion points from personnel records and also removed dependent information. The Army said they will have personnel records updated by February 20, 2023, and all dependent information corrected by March 1.
As a service member, it is vital to review and clarify your personnel record. It is important to review any retirement and DEERS information frequently to ensure it is correct. Print out copies of your dependent information, TSP beneficiaries, and DEERS list – this is handy if the system boots your information. Make sure to check your records monthly to catch any potential missing information or errors.
Is this an Army-only issue, or does it relate to the other services as well?
I served in the Navy over in Naples, Italy, Chicago and San Diego for what amounted to 4 years and later on in the New York Army National Guard in Yonkers, NY and Utica, NY. I also, served in the Navy Reserve for 3 years in Albany, NY and Worcester, MA. Yet despite that nearly every single day almost as regular as clock-work a person calls me regarding benefits for the victims of the tainted water at Camp Lejeune and tries to get me to apply for it. I politely tell this person neither I nor any member of my family ever served at Camp Lejeune. My late father served in the Army for 4 years in Fort Lee, Virginia and later at Fort Drum, NY. This has gotten to be very annoying to say the very least. Could this be wrongly documented military records.