Tricare Update

[mickeyd]

Email from MOAA indicates that Tricare fee increases may not be as bad for military folks as previously thought. I particularly like the part about Tricare rate increases not affecting disabled and survivors. We'll see...

The new plan entails no changes for TRICARE Standard or TRICARE For Life, and no means-testing of fees. It proposes what Stanley described as "modest, gradual" changes in TRICARE Prime enrollment fees, and would exempt military disability (chapter 61) retirees and survivors from those changes.

Specifically, the plan calls for:

• Raising the 2012 Prime enrollment fees by 13% -- from $230 single/$460 family per year to $260/$520 (survivor and chapter 61 retiree fees would remain at current rates)
• Indexing those fees in 2013 and beyond to a medical inflation index (based on a measure of Medicare cost growth projected to rise at 6.2% per year)
• Changing TRICARE pharmacy copays as follows (changes indicated in parentheses):

RetailHome Delivery
(Mail Order)

Generic

$5 (+$2)

Zero (-$2)​

Brand Name

$12 (+$3)

$9 (no change)​

Nonformulary

$25 (+$3)

$25 (+$3)​

MOAA is encouraged that the new proposal avoids the draconian TRICARE fee increases proposed in the past. While some areas warrant additional adjustment, it makes a better effort to recognize that career military people pre-pay a very large price for their lifetime health coverage up front - through decades of service and sacrifice.

 

[BLS53]

Is there any information on how Tricare would be affected if Obamacare goes through?

 

[jimnjana]

Email from MOAA indicates that Tricare fee increases may not be as bad for military folks as previously thought. I particularly like the part about Tricare rate increases not affecting disabled and survivors. We'll see...

The guest speaker at our local MOAA chapter meeting was a HQ MOAA staffer, he talked about this a bit and said that MOAA and the other Military Coalition members were pushing against TRICARE increases greater than COLA increases...Also discussed the fight against cutting payments to TRICARE providers. In some parts of the US trying to find a TRICARE provider is difficult, cutting payment for services will make it even more so.

As discussed in another thread, I think increases are inevitable. Just do it fairly for all.