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There is a relationship between the accession medical standards to which military recruits are held and medical discharges later in a career

• Recruits who were held to stricter medical standards at the time of their entrance medical exams were less likely to be medically discharged than those who were accessioned under looser standards.
• On the other hand, those whose medical exams occurred after accession medical standards were relaxed were no more likely to be medically discharged than those whose exams took place prior to the policy change.
• These policy changes are associated with cost savings to DoD ranging from $1 million to $9 million per 10,000 service members accessioned after the policy change.

There are trade-offs for tightening these standards

• Unless waivers are granted, tightening standards removes the opportunity to serve for those who do not meet these requirements.
• The higher the standard to which recruits are held, the more difficult it is to recruit people who meet those standards.
• One measure of success is whether a service member completes a first term. Even if a service member is discharged because of a medical condition, that person's service to the military while able to serve has important value, especially if the member is healthy enough to complete a full term of service.