Tricare
New TRICARE coverage for all members of the National Guard will be available on October 1, 2006. Please see the following link for more information: www.tricare.osd.mil/reserve/index.cfm
On December 18, 2005, the Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006. Contained within is a provision providing every member of the National Guard access to TRICARE healthcare coverage on a cost-share basis. The categories are as follows:
Group 1: Those members who have been called up to active duty for 90 days or more can participate in TRICARE Reserve Select. Those eligible under this category will pay 28% of the premium, with DoD paying the other 72%. (This category is the exact same category as found in last year's bill, nothing has changed)
Group 2: Those members of the National Guard who are unemployed or cannot access healthcare coverage because their employer does not offer it can participate in TRICARE Standard. TRICARE Standard is a fee-for-service plan. Those eligible under this category will pay 50% of the premium, with DoD paying the other 50%.
Group 3: Those members of the National Guard who are employed and are currently participating in their employer's healthcare coverage but would like to participate in TRICARE instead of their employer's healthcare plan can participate in TRICARE Standard. As stated above, TRICARE Standard is a fee-for-service plan. Those eligible under this category will pay 85% of the premium, with DoD paying the other 15%.
Service on Title 10 is a requirement for those qualifying for Group 1 coverage. There is no Title 10/ Active Duty service requirement for Groups 2 or 3. Simply being a "traditional Guard member" qualifies a person for coverage under TRICARE Standard.
At this time, the Department of Defense has not released any numbers or money amounts associated with the premium costs of Groups 2 and 3. The Department of Defense must complete work on premium amounts and implement this new program for Groups 2 and 3 by October 1, 2006.
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