Current Newsletter

The Springfield Military Retiree Council
Retired military fighting for the earned benefits. Council meets the 2nd Tuesday of each month at

American Legion, Goad Ballinger Post 69, 149 Memorial Plaza, Springfield, MO.

  Visit our website at www.militaryretiree.org

The Springfield Area Military Retiree Council is for retirees, their spouses and widows/widowers of retirees from all branches of the military.  It acts as an interface between the retirees in the Springfield area and is offered support by Fort Leonard Wood Military Retiree Council.  The Council began in 1995 as a way to bring attention to the “changed truth” on promises made by the Administration, Congress and Senate.  This Council offers retiree representatives of the Ft. Wood commissary, hospital and Post Exchange to present suggestions and grievances to the Commanders of each of these facilities.  The more members a sub-council has the more influence these members will have when presenting ideas.

January 12, 2010

TRICARE University Provides Online Benefit Education

FALLS CHURCH, Va. – If you’re new to the military and eager to learn about your health care benefits or an old hand who wants to know the latest changes, TRICARE University is the place to go. TRICARE University offers free online courses 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year at www.tricare.mil/tricareu.
 
“The courses can be taken anytime and you can learn at your own pace,” said Rear Adm. Christine Hunter, deputy director of the TRICARE Management Activity. “It’s the simplest way to learn about your TRICARE benefit.”

 Three different online courses are available. Of these, the TRICARE Public Course provides the quickest and easiest way to get a general overview and basic knowledge of TRICARE programs. There is no registration for this course and it’s accessible to anyone who wants to know more about TRICARE. 

 The TRICARE Fundamentals Course is much more in-depth as it is primarily designed for TRICARE benefit counselors and family support staff who provide counseling and assistance to TRICARE beneficiaries. Topics covered include TRICARE eligibility, TRICARE programs and plans and on-line resources. Registration is needed to take the course and “graduates” who pass the test at the end of the course receive a certificate from TRICARE.
 

 Members of the Selected Reserve who want to know more about TRICARE Reserve Select (TRS) can hone their understanding through a TRICARE University course devoted to this premium-based health care plan. Newly activated Guard and Reserve members might also find the TRICARE public course helpful as it provides a convenient way to learn about their health care benefits while on active duty.

To take one of the offered courses, go to www.tricare.mil/tricareu and click “online training” for a list of options.

                 About TRICARE Management Activity and the Military Health System
TRICARE Management Activity, the Defense Department activity that administers the health care plan for the uniformed services, retirees and their families, serves more than 9.5 million      eligible beneficiaries worldwide in the Military Health System (MHS). The mission of the MHS is to enhance Department of Defense and national security by providing health support for the full range of military operations. The MHS provides quality medical care through a network of providers, military treatment facilities, medical clinics and dental clinics worldwide. For more about the MHS go to www.health.mil.

VA Postpones Scheduled Drug Copayment Increase

On New Year’s Eve the VA announced in the Federal Register that they were going to postpone until July 1, the scheduled co pay increase from $8 to $9. The co pay is charged for 30 day prescriptions to Veterans who are outpatients being treated for non service connected conditions. (Co-payments are not charged for prescriptions for service connected conditions; or to veterans for any prescription if they are 50% or more service disabled, or for some low income veterans). $2 co pay was originally instituted in 2002, then rose in 2008 to $7 for a 30 day supply; and then increased again last year to $8. The governing regulation states that the copayment will increase every January 1 based on any increase in the prescription drug portion of the Medical Consumer Price Index calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The VA delayed the increase so it can look at other ways it might chose to calculate the co-payment cost. The temporary freeze will apply both to the copayment and to a scheduled $120 increase in the present $960 copayment cap for treatments of non-service connected conditions. We need to keep an eye on whatever proposal for new modification of the regulations might be attempted in the summer- but at this time it is good news.

We will have a guest speaker at the 9 February meeting to talk about retirement savings. His name is Jim Osburn and he's a Retirement Income Manager. He will begin as soon as Duane has finished the council business.