How to Fill Out and Submit CAPF 160: Civil Air Patrol Health History Form

CAPF 160 is the Civil Air Patrol Member Health History Form — a two-page, self-reported document that every cadet and senior member completes so activity staff know about medical conditions, allergies, and medications before an event. You fill it out yourself (no doctor visit required), update it at least once a year or whenever your health changes, and submit it to the activity’s Health Services Officer before any qualifying event.¹²

When You Actually Need One

Weekly squadron meetings usually don’t require it. CAPR 160-1 draws the line by what the activity involves, not by what it’s called. You need a current CAPF 160 (or CAPHealth profile) for any activity with an overnight stay, any field activity, and any event with enough physical exertion that staff need to screen participants in advance. Health information is also collected when members will self-administer medications or when a condition could affect participation.³

In practice that means encampments, National Cadet Special Activities, flight clinics, search-and-rescue exercises, and most weekend bivouacs. For short activities with no overnight component, you still carry a copy of your CAPF 160 and CAPF 161 on you, unless the event uses the CAPHealth online system — in which case the paper forms aren’t required.³

Some activities also require a CAPF 162, which is a separate physical exam form completed by your personal physician. The activity leader can require it when a member’s physical ability needs to be evaluated by staff, whether or not the event is overnight.³

Where To Get the Form

The blank CAPF 160 is on the CAP National Headquarters forms page at gocivilairpatrol.com as a PDF or Word document.⁴ Many squadrons and wings also post a direct link on their own sites.

CAP now steers members toward CAPHealth, the online medical profile accessed through the eServices portal. It mirrors the information on both the CAPF 160 and the CAPF 161, so if your wing or activity uses it, your online profile substitutes for both paper forms.³ Encampments are specifically encouraged to use the Registration Zone platform, which integrates CAPHealth alongside parent approvals and payment.⁵

Filling It Out

Everything on CAPF 160 is self-reported. The point isn’t to disqualify anyone; it’s to make sure staff know what they’re working with. Answer honestly and completely.

Page One: You and Your Medical History

The top of page one asks for your name (last, first, middle), CAP grade, CAPID, charter number, date of birth, height, weight, hair color, eye color, and gender. Your address and phone number are not on this form — those live on the CAPF 161.¹

Below the demographics is an open allergies field. List every medication, food, and environmental allergy — bee stings, plants, latex — along with the reaction each one causes. If the allergy affects your diet, note it again in the dietary section on page two.¹

The rest of page one is a checklist of roughly 40 yes/no medical history questions covering vision and hearing, heart conditions, diabetes, seizures, mental health, sleep disorders, motion sickness, bedwetting, and more. Mark “yes” for anything that applies now or applied in the past, and add detail in the space provided. If you have asthma and use an inhaler, this is where staff will see it.¹

Page Two: Diet, Surgeries, Shots, Medications

Page two opens with dietary restrictions — food allergies, diabetic diets, gluten-free, vegetarian, anything kitchen staff need to know.

Next is surgical history: list past surgeries and their approximate dates, including common ones like tonsils, ear tubes, appendectomy, and hernia repair. Then comes immunizations, with date fields for tetanus (Td or Tdap), hepatitis, pneumonia, varicella, and influenza. If you haven’t had one of these, check the “No” box rather than leaving it blank.¹

The medication table asks for each prescription drug or inhaler by name, tablet strength, how many times per day you take it, the reason, and any special dosing or storage notes. Be precise. What you write here must match exactly what you bring to the activity.⁶ A short social history section on tobacco use follows.

The Parent Consent Block (Cadets Under 18)

The bottom of page two carries a consent section that applies only to cadets under 18. A parent or legal guardian’s signature grants three things at once:

Permission for full CAP program participation, subject to any limitations noted on the form.
Consent for the cadet to possess and self-administer the prescription medications listed on the form.
Authorization for a licensed health-care practitioner chosen by the adult leader to provide emergency treatment — hospitalization, anesthesia, surgery, or medication injections — if the parent cannot be reached.¹

The block also authorizes providers to share exam results and treatment details with the adult in charge. A parent who wants to deny the self-administration piece can cross that line out. Senior members sign their own form to certify accuracy and don’t need the emergency treatment consent.¹

CAPF 160 Isn’t the Only Form

A common mistake: treating CAPF 160 as the only health paperwork you need. It isn’t.

CAPF 161 (Emergency Information) collects what CAPF 160 leaves out — mailing address, phone numbers, health insurance company and policy number, prescription coverage, family physician contact, and emergency contacts with phone numbers and relationships. CAPR 160-1 treats the two as a pair, and most activities that require one require both.⁷³p>

CAPF 163 (Permission for Provision of Minor Cadet Over-the-Counter Medication) is separate again. CAPF 160 covers your prescriptions; if you want staff to be able to give a minor cadet common OTC remedies like acetaminophen, ibuprofen, antihistamines, cough suppressants, or antifungal creams, a parent has to sign CAPF 163 and cross out anything they don’t approve. Some states restrict who can administer medications, and wings in those states publish additional guidance as a supplement to CAPR 160-1.⁸

Submitting the Form

How you turn it in depends on the activity. Many events, especially encampments, run entirely through CAPHealth in the Registration Zone portal, so submission is paperless. If your activity still uses paper, the standard procedure is to seal your completed CAPF 160 and CAPF 161 in an envelope labeled with your name and unit, then hand it to the HSO or designated senior member at check-in. During encampment in-processing, a senior staff member confirms with you that nothing has changed since you applied.⁵

Ideally the envelope is opened and reviewed by a qualified HSO — a nurse, physician assistant, or physician. When no qualified HSO is available, the activity commander or a designee may handle it. The final decision on whether a member can safely participate rests with the activity leader after reviewing the health profile or forms.³

Who Sees Your Information

Access is limited to senior members with a legitimate need to know. Paper records must be kept in a locked container or file cabinet when not in use, electronic records must be password-protected, and only senior members specifically authorized by the activity commander may access them. One thing worth knowing: HIPAA does not apply to CAP’s handling of member health forms, because CAP’s activity operations aren’t a “covered entity” under the statute. CAP enforces its own privacy rules through CAPR 160-1 instead.³

Keeping It Current

CAPR 160-1 requires members to update their CAPF 160 or CAPHealth profile at least once a year, and sooner if the information changes.² The regulation doesn’t publish a list of triggering changes, but the categories CAPHealth tracks give you a working checklist: new medications, new allergies, hospitalizations, operations, chronic illness diagnoses, and vaccination updates.⁹ Start a new prescription, have surgery, or pick up a new diagnosis? Update before your next activity rather than waiting for the annual cycle. An outdated form is worse than no form — it gives staff false confidence about what they’re dealing with.

1
Civil Air Patrol. CAP Member Health History Form
2
Civil Air Patrol. Interim Change Letter CAPR 160-1(I)
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Civil Air Patrol. Interim Change Letter – CAPR 160-1(I)
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Civil Air Patrol. Forms – Civil Air Patrol National Headquarters
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Civil Air Patrol. Encampment Guide
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Civil Air Patrol. Health and Cadet Medications at Encampment
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Civil Air Patrol. CAPF 161 – Civil Air Patrol
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Civil Air Patrol. Permission for Provision of Minor Cadet Over-the-Counter Medication (CAPF 163)
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Civil Air Patrol. CAP Health