Posted on 03/19/2010 10:13:55 PM PDT by No Longer Free State
Skelton to Introduce Legislation to Protect TRICARE
Washington, D.C.Today, House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-Mo.) released the statement below regarding his intent to introduce legislation to explicitly state in law that TRICARE and the DOD nonappropriated fund (NAF) health plans meet all of the health care requirements currently under consideration by Congress for individual health insurance. These programs provide health coverage to members of the military and their families, military retirees and their families, and employees of U.S. military post/base exchanges and other nonappropriated fund activities.
Our nations military provides us with first-class protection, and it is our obligation to provide themand their familieswith first-class health care in return. While some of this Committees members may disagree on overall health care reform, we are united in our commitment to ensuring that any measure signed into law will not have any unintended consequences that adversely impact the military health care programs for our men and women in uniform and their families.
Although the health care legislation passed by the House explicitly exempted TRICARE from being affected, the Senate bill did not. Unfortunately, the parliamentary rules of the reconciliation process did not allow for the inclusion of language that specifically protects these programs. To reassure our nations service members and their families that their health coverage will remain unaffected by this, I will introduce legislation this week to explicitly state that TRICARE and the NAF health plans meet all requirements for individual health insurance; this language will also be included in this years national defense authorization bill.
This still does NOT answer the question of whether the NEW FEES from a 2008 DOD bill which are scheduled to go into effect in 2011 have been repealed?
Congress plans to block Tricare fee increases (same article 2 sources)
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/10/military_tricarefees_blocked_100709w
http://www.navytimes.com/news/2009/10/military_tricarefees_blocked_100709w/
By Rick Maze - Staff writer, Oct 7, 2009
Tricare fee increases imposed last week by the Defense Department will be repealed by a provision of the compromise 2010 defense authorization bill unveiled Wednesday by House and Senate negotiators.
The fee increases were announced on Sept. 30 and took effect on Oct. 1, but the defense bill, HR 2647, includes a provision barring any fee increases until the start of fiscal 2011.
Retired Army Maj. Gen. Bill Matz, president of the National Association for Uniformed Services, said the announcement of fee increases was shocking considering that the Obama administration promised earlier this year to hold off on any new fee Tricare fee increases until fiscal 2011.
President Obama and DOD assured NAUS and the entire military family earlier this year that there would rightly be no increases in any Tricare fees in fiscal 2010, Matz said. We took them at their word, and I cant believe that a co-pay increase like this was allowed to go forward, he added.
See post 53
TRI CARE FOR LIFE This from a google search:
http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2009/05/tricare-for-life-is-obama-trying-to.html
Option 96 pg 187 (i made page correction)
This option would help reduce the costs of TFL, as well as costs for Medicare, by introducing minimum out-of pocket requirements for beneficiaries. Under this option, TFL would not cover any of the first $525 of an enrollees cost-sharing liabilities for calendar year 2011 and would limit coverage to 50 percent of the next $4,725 in Medicare cost sharing that the beneficiary incurred. (Because all further cost sharing would be covered by TFL, enrollees could not pay more than $2,888 in cost sharing in that year.) http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/99xx/doc9925/12-18-HealthOptions.pdf
Impact of Medicare Reimbursement Rate Decrease on TRICARE
On March 3, Congress passed emergency legislation delaying the 21.2 percent decrease in Medicare reimbursement rates for an additional 30 days. The TRICARE Management Activity greatly appreciates Congress’ swift action as it allowed more time to fully evaluate the impact the decrease in Medicare reimbursement rates will have on the TRICARE program.
Whatever the outcome, TRICARE will take at least 30 days to fully understand the impact on TRICARE and take appropriate action. While federal law requires TRICARE reimbursement rates to be equal to Medicare rates to the extent practical, the law does permit TRICARE to make exceptions to ensure an adequate network of providers or to eliminate a situation of severely impaired access to care.
More information about this legislation and its impact on TRICARE will be posted on the TRICARE.mil website as soon as it becomes available.
Not just the failure to cover the Military and retired Military but the HUGE NEW FEES they are going to be socked with along with that cheesy 1.9% phony pay raise along with NO COLA’s for those retired Military over 65 who are on SS and Military retirement. Yet are being asked for MORE taxes at state, federal and local level. We Seniors are taking the brunt of obamacare.!
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