Bowe Bergdahl washed out of the Coast Guard during basic training in 2006. His military record didn’t go into detail about why; his separation was categorized only as an “uncharacterized discharge.” This meant that when Bergdahl went to enlist in the army in 2008, he had to explain that previous discharge and get a waiver. The army considers waivers for all kinds of reasons, like if a recruit has a criminal record or a physical or mental health issue. They are granted on a case-by-case basis. In the middle of two long wars, in Iraq and Afghanistan, the army softened some of its restrictions and approved more waivers to meet recruitment needs. Hover over the graphic to see the number of waivers given for each year.