Up to a Year of Waiting: How Ukraine’s Military Medical Boards Delay Illness Certificate Approvals for Conscripts.

Determining Fitness for Service in the Armed Forces and the Role of Illness Certificates

According to Novyny.live: This article examines how Ukrainian citizens are assessed for military service fitness through illness certificates, the approval process within military medical commissions, and the timelines for reviewing applications under martial law. Individuals are removed from military registration based on these certificates, which must be validated by official military medical boards (VLK).

Official Deadlines Exist, but Wartime Realities Render Them Ineffective

During martial law, the review period for illness certificates by VLK can stretch from six to twelve months. Depending on their health status, a conscript may be deemed fit or unfit for service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Although regulations stipulate that the VLK should process an illness certificate within no more than five calendar days after a medical examination, current conditions have led to severe delays.

'Unfortunately, the VLK Regulations do not set any specific review deadlines for the official military medical board itself,' says Yuriy Ayvazyan.

Vladyslav Deriy emphasized that 'under martial law, the VLK is supposed to process illness certificates within five calendar days after the medical exam, but in reality, citizens now wait between six and twelve months for approval.' This highlights serious systemic issues that require urgent resolution.

As a result, the process of determining fitness for military service in Ukraine during wartime faces numerous challenges, complicating the procedures assigned to military medical commissions.

The widespread delays in processing illness certificates underscore the urgent need to reform Ukraine’s military medical commission system. These bottlenecks can undermine national defense readiness by creating unnecessary hardships for citizens unable to obtain a clear decision on their service eligibility. In a time of war, ensuring speed and efficiency in military medicine is critical to maintaining the combat readiness of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.