Military Officer - January 2008 - (Page 40) washingtonscene ■ Work closely with DoD and TRICARE contractors to ensure Prime access standards are met and the specialty care authorization and referral process is upgraded to meet beneficiary needs. ■ Seek legislation to provide a subsidy for the TRICARE Retiree Dental Plan that will serve enrollees better and encourage more retirees to enroll in the plan. Pretax health premium payments/FSAs Continue to pursue DoD implementation of flexible spending accounts (FSAs) to allow active duty and Selected Reserve members to pay out-of-pocket health and dependent care expenses with pretax dollars. Authorize pretax payment of TRICARE Prime enrollment fees and premiums for TRICARE supplemental, long-term care, and TRICARE dental insurance. Pretax premium payment is already a standard part of many private sector and federal benefits packages, and military beneficiaries should have the same option. Guard/Reserve health care Promote availability of TRICARE Reserve Select (TRS) coverage, and seek enactment of legislation to give Selected Reserve members the option of having the government subsidize continuation of civilian health coverage during periods of activation — just as the government already provides up to 24 months of federal employee health benefits plan premium coverage for mobilized federal workers. MOAA believes subsidizing civilian employer coverage will be both more popular with beneficiaries and cheaper for the government over the long term. Oppose any TRS fee increases at least through 2008. MOAA is concerned TRS is the only federal program that requires an enrollment fee without guaranteeing access to participating providers within defined time standards. VA-DoD issues Full funding of VA care is as important as funding for defense programs. VA budgets must be based on expected future requirements, taking into account the growing population of returnees from Iraq and Afghanistan. DoD and the VA should collaborate on providing long-term medical and non-medical counseling and support services for survivors and families of the severely injured. MOAA will continue to be watchful against any new initiative to force dual-eligible beneficiaries to choose between the DoD and VA health systems for the government’s budgetary and program-planning convenience. Pharmacy issues Work with DoD and Congress to maintain a comprehensive uniform pharmacy benefit with a robust formulary that preserves beneficiary options to obtain specific pharmaceuticals determined necessary by their providers. Promote positive incentives (e.g., reduce or eliminate mail-order copayments) for TRICARE beneficiaries to utilize the less expensive mail-order system. MOAA will strive to maximize beneficiary choice, minimize beneficiary costs, and help educate beneficiaries and providers to make the best use of the various TRICARE pharmacy options. 40 MILITARY OFFICER JANUARY 2008 Retired pay and survivor issues Disability retirement reform Seek legislation to ensure fair treatment of servicemembers forced from service due to service-caused conditions. Military disability retirement decisions should include all disqualifying conditions and accept VA-assigned disability ratings for those conditions. Eliminate SBP-DIC offset MOAA will continue to fight for full repeal of the deduction of VA Dependency and
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