VA buyout of HPSP commitment

[Radiology1987]

Would anyone be able to elaborate on any pathway for a VA buyout of an HPSP commitment? This was briefly mentioned in a reply to an article several years, but no information was provided.  There is no readily available information online from my searches. I am beginning to think there is no formalized pathway in place. Anything to change this presumption would be welcomed.

Thanks.

[DMFA]

Never heard of it...but I guess that doesn't mean it doesn't exist.  Seems too good to be true.  I'm sure a lot of us would love not to have to worry about having to PCS or deploy while having no med school debt; we could have our cake and eat it too.

[StarTrekDoc]

HPSP-VA is on paper, but hasn't been developed to date for physicians.  My understanding is that if VA does this, it will destroy DoD HSPS by simple fact of no risk of being deployed.

[Hank]

Is the VA really that hard up for new physicians?  Is there any possibility that this administration (or any plausibly electable democratic administration) would allow such a thing?

A VA buyout of a 4+ year HPSP obligation sounds like an intriguing proposal.  It also sounds incredibly unlikely.

On the other hand, if you had prior military medical service and perhaps USUHS time or military service prior to your time as a resident, then five years with the VA, public health service, or working as a civil service GS doctor for the DoD high have some serious appeal if you could buy back your prior military doctor experience / time for3% of base pay.

[Radiology1987]

Thanks for the reply. I don't understand its value to the involved parties, but I have just been curious since I read the comment (without further discussion) "A quicker way out of the federal service is to do 5 VA years and buy the time at the end of your obligated service. A federal retirement plus a reserve retirement basically evens out the loss of the AD retirement for the intervening years. This can cut 3-5 years off of the total. Plus no deployments." below an article 3 years ago at https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/should-i-stay-or-should-i-go-financial-implications-of-military-separation/

Do you have any documentation of it? I'm currently paying back HPSP time but just curious if there are other avenues for paying back time that I am unaware of.

[The White Coat Investor]

Hmmm.....never really heard of this option. It certainly isn't widely advertised.

[DMFA]

Radiology1987 wrote:

Thanks for the reply. I don’t understand its value to the involved parties, but I have just been curious since I read the comment (without further discussion) “A quicker way out of the federal service is to do 5 VA years and buy the time at the end of your obligated service. A federal retirement plus a reserve retirement basically evens out the loss of the AD retirement for the intervening years. This can cut 3-5 years off of the total. Plus no deployments.” below an article 3 years ago at https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/should-i-stay-or-should-i-go-financial-implications-of-military-separation/

Do you have any documentation of it? I’m currently paying back HPSP time but just curious if there are other avenues for paying back time that I am unaware of.

Click to expand...

This is after having fulfilled your HPSP commitment, but you want to get a federal/military retirement, so you make up the remaining time to retirement with the VA and/or reserves.  You can't fulfill the ADSC/ADSO with VA time.

[Hank]

That makes far more sense.  You don't get out of your active duty commitment.  They're just talking about how to get some retirement from the federal government if you don't serve 20+ years on active duty.

I've got to admit, the VA seems like an ideal employer if you want to continue to serve in the Guard or reserves.  Double-dipping for both a FERS retirement and a reserve retirement potentially is a good deal.  You certainly would hope that the VA wouldn't penalize a doctor for getting called up for deployment.  A family practice or internal medicine doc might do just as well at the VA as at Kaiser or working in academia.  A surgical specialist in a highly lucrative field might not do as well practicing government medicine.

 

On the other hand, I don't think it would be a good idea to be a sole practitioner in private practice with a sizable mortgage and business acquisition loan and be on the hook for Guard or reserve deployments.

[StarTrekDoc]

We had plenty of docs from DoD move to VA to finish out pension time to MRA and transfer all those credit years.

Deployment not an issue;  worked there from 2000-2014 and went through 9/11, the surge, and afterwards.  We had several staff deployed and extended without issues.   More work for us stateside, but we all are the better for it.

You just have to understand the VA and have a decent administrator at the helm; otherwise it could be a bit of a nuisance.

[BladeRunner]

I was personally able to buy out of my last 1.5 years of active duty commitment from my HPSP Scholarship when the DOD closed the base that I was assigned to.  Short of extenuating circumstances like that, I doubt that there are many other options. It was a good deal for me as I am a surgical subspecialist.

[Hank]

BladeRunner wrote:

I was personally able to buy out of my last 1.5 years of active duty commitment from my HPSP Scholarship when the DOD closed the base that I was assigned to.  Short of extenuating circumstances like that, I doubt that there are many other options. It was a good deal for me as I am a surgical subspecialist.

Click to expand...

Wow, buying out the last of your initial commitment due to a base closure!  That's right up there with active duty retirements at 15 years instead of 20 during a reduction in force (RIF).  It's been know to happen on rare occasions, but I sure as heck wouldn't count on it.