![]() ![]() We will fight any proposal that increases costs to seniors who rely on TFL for their health care. MOAA appreciates the importance of addressing the deficit, but our nation must fulfill its obligations to those who served a full career in uniform. An enrollment fee would result in some beneficiaries foregoing TFL and switching to other Medicare supplemental plans.ĬBO notes the out-of-pocket cost plan would reduce Medicare spending because higher costs would lead beneficiaries to use fewer medical services – even though seniors in the military health system already have slightly lower health care utilization than their civilian counterparts, according to DoD’s Evaluation of the TRICARE Program FY 2022 Report to Congress. The cost-sharing option would also require TFL beneficiaries seeking care from military treatment facilities (MTFs) to make payments roughly comparable to the charges they would face at civilian facilities this would reduce their incentive to avoid out-of-pocket costs by switching to MTFs.ĬBO acknowledges these plans would discourage retirees from using their earned health care benefit. Similar to the enrollment fee proposal, cost-sharing requirements would increase annually at the rate of Medicare cost increases. This means TFL beneficiaries could face up to $4,675 in cost-sharing per year. After the deductible was satisfied, TFL would cover only 50% of the next $7,650 in Medicare cost-sharing. The other CBO measure would introduce minimum out-of-pocket requirements in TFL, including an $850 deductible – TFL would not cover any of the first $850 of a beneficiary’s Medicare cost-sharing. The enrollment fees would be indexed to grow at the same rate as average Medicare costs in later years. A CBO proposal would require Medicare-eligible beneficiaries who choose to enroll in TFL to pay an annual enrollment fee of $575 for individual coverage or $1,150 for family coverage. TFL beneficiaries pay Medicare Part B premiums, but TFL enrollment is automatic, and there is no enrollment fee or monthly premium for TFL coverage. While these are not legislative proposals, MOAA believes we must address them as serious threats given recent cuts to the TRICARE pharmacy program and the series of TRICARE fee increases associated with military health system reforms. Similar concepts have been presented in past CBO reports, which are issued every two years to provide information to lawmakers confronting budgetary challenges. A biennial report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) takes aim at TRICARE For Life (TFL), offering two proposals among its options to cut the deficit that would significantly increase costs for seniors using the TFL benefit.īoth TFL options would reduce the federal government's mandatory spending via unacceptable plans to shift health care costs from DoD to uniformed services retirees. ![]()
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