"...For 2022, Medicare premiums will increase an average of 14.5%. That means the average Medicare user will pay $170.10 monthly, a $21.60 increase from the 2021 monthly premium of $148.50...."
Showing posts with label Tricare. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tricare. Show all posts
Nov 16, 2021
May 5, 2020
Tricare Limiting Asthma Inhaler Refills During COVID-19 Pandemic
Tricare's Express Scripts is limiting prescriptions to some asthma medications due to them being needed for Coronavirus patients.
The medications being limited are albuterol and levalbuterol which are also known by the brand names ProAir, Proventil, Ventolin and Xopenex.
They are being limited to one inhaler every 30 days.
Apr 18, 2020
You Might be Due a Rebate If You're a Retiree with TRICARE Prime
"...About 35,000 military retirees will soon receive cash refunds from Tricare, thanks to a policy change made last year that affects how Tricare calculates annual out-of-pocket maximum payments.
The rebates impact retirees with Tricare Prime who paid more than $2,400 out of pocket towards their annual maximum payment in 2018 and 2019. They do not impact Tricare for Life or Tricare Retired Reserve users...."
Apr 8, 2020
Tricare to Waive Coronavirus Test Visit Copays, But Not Off-Base Pharmacy Fees
"...Tricare users who typically face copays for off-base doctor visits and tests will not owe anything out of pocket for the appointment if they are receiving a coronavirus test, but those required to head off-base for prescriptions must pay any related costs themselves, Military.com has learned.
The fee waiver is included in coronavirus-related legislation passed last month, known as the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. The law requires that all fees be waived for both the virus test itself and any visit associated with getting the test...."
Apr 1, 2020
Prepare for Military Pharmacy Closures and Changes over COVID-19 Pandemic
"The Defense Health Agency issued new guidance on March 30 directing that all military hospitals and clinics determine pharmacy availability as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic," officials said in a release.
Measures being looked at include ending access for non-active duty family members to on-base pharmacies; temporarily closing on-base pharmacy locations completely; and changing the way prescriptions are delivered, such as staggered or curbside pickups, among other options.
Mar 23, 2020
TRICARE Home Delivery for Medications
"...As part of its COVID-19 guidance, the federal government recommends having a supply of all necessary medications on hand. For members of the military community, TRICARE offers a convenient option of getting a 90-day supply of your prescriptions through TRICARE Pharmacy Home Delivery.
TRICARE offers options of getting a 90-day supply of your prescriptions at military pharmacies, through its home delivery program or at a retail pharmacy. Home delivery is available all the time and is a seamless way to ensure you always have your medications.
Home delivery of your medicines can help keep you protected during the coronavirus disease outbreak...."
Mar 19, 2020
Tricare Users Can Get Tested for Coronavirus
"...Military family members and retirees covered under Tricare and veterans using the Department of Veterans Affairs health system can receive a test for the novel coronavirus, formally known as COVID-19, but only if they meet certain conditions, officials said...
Tricare announced via Facebook Tuesday COVID-19 testing is free for all beneficiaries. While it will still be no-cost if the test was prescribed by a network or non-provider, the usual copay or cost-share for the doctor visit will apply...."
Jan 15, 2019
CBO Suggests Raising Tricare Fees
"...With the federal deficit expected to top $1 trillion this year, the Congressional Budget Office in December published a list of options for reducing the imbalance over the next 10 years, including three suggestions on Tricare and six that address veterans benefits.
In its Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2019 to 2028, the CBO laid out 121 opportunities for curtailing spending and raising revenue. These include raising Tricare enrollment fees for military retirees, instituting enrollment fees for Tricare for Life and reducing veterans benefits...."
Jul 25, 2018
Beware of Delays for Major Dental Work on Some New Plans
"...Military retirees who are currently using orthodontic services through Tricare's dental plan or who may soon need major dental work should select a new plan this fall that does not have a waiting period, as the Tricare retiree dental program comes to an end.
Last year, Congress ordered Tricare to shutter its retiree dental plan by Dec. 31, 2018.
Instead, military retirees will be able to purchase dental coverage through the Federal Employee Dental and Vision Insurance Program (FEDVIP) marketplace during an open enrollment period Nov. 12 to Dec. 10. Vision coverage will also be available for the first time for retirees, active-duty families, and Guard and reservists...."
Jul 16, 2018
Tricare Dental Changes Reminder Coming to Your Mailbox
"...Military retirees should soon find a postcard in their mailboxes reminding them that Tricare's retiree dental program will shutter later this year.
Currently, military retirees can purchase dental insurance through Tricare's Delta Dental coverage program.
But a law passed in 2017 ends that service and instead allows military retirees access to a dental insurance coverage marketplace currently used only by federal civilian employees. The Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program (FEDVIP) also lets retirees purchase vision insurance, an option that is not otherwise available through Tricare. ..."
Jul 13, 2018
Conferees Urged to Reject Senate-Passed TRICARE Fee Increases
"...The Military Coalition, a consortium of almost three dozen associations and veteran groups, is urging House-Senate conferees, as they negotiate a final defense policy bill, to reject Senate-passed language that would impose higher TRICARE enrollment fees and deductibles on more than a million retirees under age 65.
The Senate version of the fiscal 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (S 2987) would repeal an unusual grandfather provision in current law that protects current retirees from a host of TRICARE fee changes that, for now, target only members who enter military service this year or later and eventually retire...."
May 23, 2017
New Budget Seeks Tricare Fee Increases for Military Retirees
"...Current retirees and all troops who later enter the military retirement system would face higher Tricare fees under the Pentagon's new budget proposal.
The plan, released Tuesday, would usher those already in the Tricare system into the fee structure passed by Congress last year by removing a "grandfathering" clause included in the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). That law currently only impacts those who enter the force after January 2018.
The proposed Tricare changes do not impact elderly Tricare for Life users. All of the proposed changes must first be approved by Congress before they become law -- a process that could take months or longer -- and some lawmakers have already described the president's budget request as "dead on arrival" on Capitol Hill..."
Jul 10, 2015
Graham: Military Retirees Must Pay More for TRICARE
"...Lindsey Graham, the Republican senator from South Carolina and GOP presidential candidate, said military retirees will eventually have to pay more for their health care.
In a speech Wednesday at the Atlantic Council in Washington, D.C., Graham, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the fee structure under the military health care program known as Tricare hasn't changed with any significance in two decades.
"The retired Tricare community is going to have to increase over time the amount they pay to make it sustainable," he said. "About 5 percent of the money to pay Tricare bills comes from the patient population. In the private sector, it's about 20 [percent]. So over time, we're going to have to ask Tricare retirees to contribute more to make Tricare more sustainable."..."
Read more at Military.com
Dec 23, 2014
Move Tricare beneficiaries to Obamacare, Say Budget Experts
"...The Defense Department could slash its enormous health care budget by requiring Tricare beneficiaries not on active duty to get health care coverage through Affordable Care Act exchanges, according to several current and former congressional budget experts.
In the past several budget cycles, the Pentagon has sought to reduce its $52 billion health budget by asking Congress to approve cost-savings measures that include increased Tricare fees for retirees, fees for Tricare For Life beneficiaries and cost-shares for active-duty families.
Some proposals, such as reducing prescription costs by promoting use of military and mail-order pharmacies, have been implemented, but for the most part, Congress has resisted changes to the status quo for those who use the military health system and its private health care network.
But, the budget analysts said, the Defense Department could realize tremendous savings if it tapped into the resources offered by the general, civilian health care system and coverage available through federal or state exchanges..."
Aug 25, 2014
Higher Drug Co-Pays in 2015 Defense Bill
"...The Senate Appropriations Committee has approved a fiscal 2015 defense money bill that fully supports the Senate Armed Services Committee’s earlier embrace of key military compensation curbs sought by the Joint Chiefs of Staff..."
Included in the bill:
"...Pharmacy co-payments would be increased for beneficiaries who have prescriptions filled at retail outlets, or choose to use brand name medicines instead of less costly generic drugs. This change largely would impact military retirees and their families.
The goal is to “fully incentivize” use of TRICARE mail order and also generic drugs to save on program costs..."
Mar 1, 2014
Pentagon Budget Would Raise TRICARE Fees
"...The Pentagon’s 2015 budget proposal would raise health-care costs for certain members of the military community and drastically trim subsidies for the commissaries that provide discounted groceries to troops and their families.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said Monday that the proposed changes to the Tricare program would involve fee increases for active-duty family members and military retirees, but he provided no specifics on how much the rates would rise..."
Read more at washingtonpost.com
Dec 11, 2013
2014 Defense Act Allows Reenrollment in TRICARE Prime
"...Patricia Kime of the Military Times is reporting that the 2014 Defense Act includes a provision to allow the 171,000 military retirees who were kicked off TRICARE Prime last October, a onetime shot at reenrolling.
The National Defense Authorization Act of 2014 is very close to passing both houses of Congress. Some of the hot button issues of the last year will make it in..."
Read more at militaryadvantage.military.com
Nov 15, 2013
Tricare Service Centers Closing
"...The Defense Department will close its 189 walk-in Tricare Service Centers in the U.S., a money-saving move that is part of the reorganization of the military medical system under the Defense Health Agency.
Tricare officials said Nov. 14 that the walk-in centers, which provide beneficiaries with face-to-face assistance on claims paperwork, enrollment changes, processing and more, were inefficient and underutilized..."
Apr 20, 2013
TRICARE Co-pays Could Climb for Years
"...Rahm Emanuel, while serving as President Obama’s first chief of staff, once advised not to let a “crisis go to waste” because that’s when politicians will do things they otherwise wouldn’t.
Defense officials seem to have taken that advice to heart amid the current debt crisis with their plan to boost co-payments on military family members and retirees who use TRICARE retail and mail order pharmacies. For starters, the current $17 co-pay collected at retail outlets for 30-day prescriptions of brand name drugs found on the military formulary would jump to $26 on Oct. 1, start of the new fiscal year. The retail co-pay then would be increased by $2 every October through 2017 and possibly for five years longer because budget document refers to a 10-year phase-in plan..."
Apr 12, 2013
Obama Budget: Increase TRICARE Fees for Retirees
"...Trying once more to get military compensation costs "under control," the Obama administration has asked Congress to cap annual active duty and reserve component pay raises, and to phase in over four years a complex formula for raising TRICARE fees on retirees of all ages and their families...
As in years past, the administration seeks to cut health costs by having retirees and families pay more under all three options of TRICARE.
Here are details of these proposals:..."
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