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“People sometimes think it’s about making sure that I continue to argue for better pay, better compensation, better health care, better retirement,” Dempsey stated. “That’s part of it, or at least adequate pay, compensation, health care, and retirement. It’s also about making sure they’re well-trained, well-led, and well-equipped. And if we don’t get our manpower — look, it’s a bit of a business for me at my level. If I don’t get the manpower costs under control then the institution will suffer irreparable harm in modernization, training, and readiness.”
How do you keep faith while advocating for cutting back on the benefits of those in uniform?
MOAA’s argument is over the past decade, the plus-ups to military compensation were necessary to correct years of cutbacks that led to the troubled retention and readiness issues of the late ’90s. Now, more than ever, we must sustain the pay and benefits — not argue for “better pay, better compensation, better health care, better retirement” and especially not argue for “bending the curve” or cutting pay and benefits.
In the budget-cutting environment we face, exaggerated assumptions and statements should not be the norm. Facts should be very forthcoming and anything but hard to find — particularly when it comes to sustaining the all-volunteer force.
TRICARE/ Medicare Cuts Avoided
April 1 deadline nears.
The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 included a three-month delay in the scheduled cuts to the Medicare and TRICARE physician reimbursement rate.
This patch prevented a 24-percent cut scheduled to take effect Jan. 1, 2014.
Such a drastic cut would lead to massive health care access problems for TRICARE and Medicare beneficiaries. The three-month extension gives Congress until April 1 to work out a permanent solution.
For years, Congress has kicked the can on this critical issue, postponing the cuts in a piecemeal fashion. But a permanent solution finally might be on the horizon, with legislators on both sides of the aisle nearing a deal this fall to pay for the $130 billion permanent fix.
The three-month reprieve only postpones the need to secure a long-term solution to provide beneficiaries and physicians with health care access stability.
Pharmacy Changes Coming
Mail-order refills are now a TRICARE requirement.
Beginning Feb. 14, TRICARE For Life (TFL) beneficiaries will be required to fill maintenance medication prescription refills through the TRICARE Home Delivery (mail-order) pharmacy system. Beneficiaries may opt out after using the mail-order refill system for a one-year trial period.
The change stems from the FY 2013 Defense Authorization Act. In a bi-partisan compromise to avoid large, across-the-board TRICARE pharmacy co-payment increases, Congress included a mandatory mail-order requirement to offset the cost.
The mail-order pharmacy system lowers costs for both beneficiaries and DoD. A 90-day refill of generic medication is free through the mail-order pharmacy but costs $5 per 30-day refill at a retail drug store.
42 MILITARY OFFICER FEBRUARY 2014
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